The Joker's Circus
by Shaddic
Summary: Arkham City Alternate Ending- Rose has always been an outcast, and being sentenced to Arkham Asylum hasn't helped. But when she's given the chance to play a game where the prize is becoming the Joker's apprentice, will she meet her destiny, or die trying?
1. Chapter 1

Why am I here? What is my purpose? Where do I belong in this world?

There's not a single person who hasn't asked themselves those questions at some point in their life, but few ever truly find the answers. Me, I've been asking myself those questions since I was a kid, and as I ride in the back of a cop car to my new "home", I feel my hope of ever finding the answers I've always longed for grow smaller and smaller.

My name is Rosemary Quinn, but I call myself Rose. The cop was driving me to Arkham for a crime that should have earned me a cell in Blackgate Penitentiary, but certain details had instead gotten me an indefinite stay at the asylum.

"You nervous about going to Arkham?" asked the cop.

"Not really, after all it can't be much worse than the orphanage," I said listlessly as I looked out the window at the rain battering the window. "The only difference is that the loons at Arkham are actually certified."

He laughed and said, "I guess that's one way of looking at it."

"You don't seem very bothered by the reason I'm being sent there."

"You get used to this stuff living in Gotham, it's part of the job. Besides, I can understand why you did what you did. I mean, you did go overboard, but you seem more, I don't know, normal, than most of the people who live there. You'll recover and be out in no time."

"Here's hoping," I said as I flashed him a smile.

When we got to Arkham, I was surprised by how gothic it looked. It looked more like a haunted house than a hospital. The cop walked me inside, and the second the door was opened I heard screams. They weren't frightened screams, they reflected the madness of the patients within.

"That's odd," said the cop once we were well inside. "They knew you were coming, but no one's comin' to get you. Guess I'll just wait with you until someone comes."

He led me to a little waiting room. In it were a few chairs, old magazines and an empty receptionist's desk. As we sat down, the cop picked up a sports magazine and began flipping through it. I wasn't interested in any of the reading material this place had to offer, so I looked around the room to try to occupy myself while I waited. The little waiting room was just as dark and creepy as the outside, but in a way was worse because it looked like they had tried to make it look cheery, without success. The walls were painted a dingy shade of yellow and there were pictures of flowers hanging on the walls, but it failed to make you forget you were in an asylum. By the desk was a door, just an ordinary-looking door with nothing special about it, but I could tell it was the door that led to the rest of the asylum where the patients were held. The howls and wailing I heard seemed to be coming from behind it, and I knew that pretty soon I'd join them. Maybe I'd join in on the screaming, just to frighten the next poor soul to be sentenced here and just because I had some irritation and frustration at being sent here I needed to release.

After about five minutes of waiting, still no doctors had shown up, but Batman, Robin, and the Joker did. As they entered the waiting room, I couldn't tell who had taken the worst beating, as they all looked pretty messed up. The cop nodded to the Bat respectfully but if he noticed it he didn't show it. The Joker was talking about something and they seemed to be ignoring him. They were about to lead him through the door when a doctor finally showed up. He burst through the door, looking terrified. When he saw Batman, some of the fear vanished, but most of it was still there.

"Batman!" he gasped. "Killer Croc escaped his cell in the sewer, he's already killed two doctors! You have to stop him!"

"Stay with Joker," Batman ordered Robin.

Batman and the doctor ran off, and I was left alone with the cop, the Bird Boy, and the Clown Prince of Crime.

"Can you believe that?" exclaimed Joker angrily as he took a seat. His suit was torn in several places and there was blood smeared on his chalk-white face, but I wondered how much of it was actually his. "Bats just left me alone with one cop and a couple of teenagers to fight an over-grown lizard. Apparently Croc is more dangerous than me. This is an outrage! I guess my bad deed of the day just wasn't good enough for Bat-Brain, I'll have to try harder next time."

Unable to stop myself, I asked, "What did you do?"

He turned to focus his attention on me, and when he did the insulted look on his face melted and was replaced with a brilliant smile. His emerald green eyes flashed with something I couldn't decipher, and he said, "You know, curiosity killed the cat, but since you're not a cat I'll tell you. As you probably know, I've been outside my cell for a few months now, and a week ago my hideout was destroyed by a few disgruntled henchmen. They were upset because I hadn't paid them and they were tired of risking their lives all the time in my crazy schemes, and I tried to tell them it was in the job description, but they wouldn't listen. So I disposed of them, but I needed a new hideout. While I was searching I happened to stumble across a quaint little retirement home. I stayed there for a while until I grew bored, and then I killed everyone in there and arranged their bodies outside in a message that could only be read from the sky. Did you know we had that many old people in Gotham? I didn't. Anyway, I spelled out _Age is just a number, and so is the amount of people making up this message._ Batman didn't find it very funny though, and that's how I ended up here. How about you, kid? What's your name, and what are you in for?"

"That's enough," said Robin firmly. "You have no business talking to her."

"That's right," piped up the cop. "Leave the girl alone."

"So just because I broke one or two minor laws I can't have friends?" he asked innocently. He fixed his gaze back on me and said, "We were just having a friendly conversation, and not to mention this girl is clearly old and wise enough to decide who she does and doesn't associate with. Besides, what's to stop me from breaking into the record room and reading her files?"

"My name's Rose, and I'm in here because I murdered some people." I knew it was stupid to give the Joker any information about me, but I had seen him on the news and read his biography (the author of which who was now dead) and I knew that refusing the Joker generally wasn't a good idea.

The Joker raised an eyebrow and said, "Wait a minute, didn't I see you on the news a while back? Yes, you _were_ on the news, and I have to give you points for that seeing as you're a first-timer. The next time I see you on the news I expect you to step up your game, I can tell you've got some true potential, kid."

"That's enough!" said the cop. "Not another word, clown."

"Meanie," said Joker as he turned away.

Just then, Batman came back, looking more tired and worn than before, but still as strong as ever. He grabbed the Joker by the arm and led him away with Robin following close behind. Before he left the room, the Joker turned back and winked at me and said, "See you around, Snow!"

After he was gone, I couldn't help but wonder why he had called me snow. Sure I was kind of pale, but not enough to be called snow. In the end I decided it didn't matter, as this was the Joker we were talking about, and I figured that as long as he wasn't trying to kill me with laughing gas or his acid-squirting flower he could call me whatever he wanted.

A few minutes after that a doctor came and finally signed me in, and then handed me over to a couple of guards. They led me through the door and the screaming, of course, only got louder and harder to ignore. They had me undress and take an icy five-minute shower, and then I was given an asylum uniform and was led to my tiny cell. Actually, it wasn't just my cell. I would be sharing it with someone else.

A girl with fiery red curls was laying on a cot on the right side of the room, and as soon as she saw me her face filled with anger.

"Who is this? I told you I didn't want another roommate!"

"It's not my job to care about what you want, Zelda," growled the guard. "We're running low on space, so you'll just have to deal with it."

"Aren't you afraid I'll kill her or something? Or is it not your job to care about patient's welfare?" shot back Zelda.

"Trust me, this one doesn't need protection from you," said the guard indifferently. He ushered me inside and then walked away.

Zelda scowled at me, and I met her gaze. I could tell this girl wouldn't be going out of her way to make my stay more pleasant, but I wasn't about to let her think she would be able to intimidate me. We stared at each other like that for a while, until an orderly knocked on the glass.

"Medicine," she said simply. She slid a tray through a tiny slot, and waited until we had taken the pills off the tray before she pulled it back. I looked at the three pills in my hand; two were familiar, I had been taking them as long as I could remember for my blood-disorder. I could only guess as to what the other was, but I took it anyway, too tired to care if the pill I had just taken was helpful or harmful. Zelda hid her pills in a hole cut into her mattress, and I wondered if she was stocking up or just didn't like taking her pills. Maybe both.

I laid down on my cot and tried to sleep, but sleep didn't come easy. I was a little worried that the Joker might come and kill me, but quickly dismissed my concerns. If he did decide to kill me, surely it wouldn't be because I had engaged in conversation with him.

Just as I was about to fall asleep, I felt something cover my face, cutting off my flow of air. I grabbed at the thing covering my face and pulled it out of my attacker's hands. The thing turned out to be a pillow, and my attacker was Zelda. I could tell I had surprised her by fighting back instead of continuing sleeping, but her surprise didn't last long and she socked me in the jaw. Before I could fight back she grabbed me by the throat and pulled me to the floor and began to squeeze. Unable to breathe, I fought back by clawing at her face, making several scratches down her face and drawing blood, but she didn't let go. Her face was filled with anger and her brown eyes filled with hatred. Black spots burst before my eyes as I used up the last of my strength to grab a handful of her hair and ram her head into the side of my metal cot. This fazed her a bit and her grip on me loosened slightly, and I took advantage of her momentary weakness and beat her head into the side of the bed again, and continued to do so until she let go. I threw her off of me and gasped for air, and before she could strike back I pinned her to the floor. When she tried to escape I jabbed my knee into her stomach and slammed her head into the floor. She finally gave up and stared up at me. Her furious expression disappeared as a mischievous grin stretched across her face.

"My last roommate didn't put up nearly so strong a fight, I can see why they put us together, they were probably hoping we'd kill each other." She paused, then said, "You know what, you're all right. If you let me up I promise I won't try to kill you again, at least not while you're sleeping."

"Why should I trust you? What's to keep you from trying to kill me again? I'm tired and I don't want to have to defend myself."

"Pinkie promise?" she offered. "It's not like you have much choice, you know."

She was right, I didn't have a choice. I couldn't keep her pinned to the floor forever, so I released her and sat down on my cot and watched her carefully as she did the same.

"What was the point of killing me, anyway? And while I was sleeping?"

"Yeah, it was kind of unfair of me to do while you were sleeping, but I figured that by smothering you I could kill you without anyone noticing and in the morning the guards could deal with your body. It's nothing personal, I just don't like sharing a cell. It was to prove to my doctor that forcing me to share a cell is a bad idea, but I think you and I could learn to get along. Let's start over and forget the murder attempt." She held out her hand and said, "I'm Zelda Rainey, and who are you?"

I reluctantly took her hand and said, "I'm Rose."

"Well Rose, I'm going to sleep," declared Zelda as she laid down and turned toward the wall. I did the same but couldn't sleep. I was too keyed up from the fight and I had to be on my guard in case Zelda changed her mind, although since I had probably given her a concussion she probably wouldn't be up for murder, at least not tonight. My mind couldn't sleep, but the fight had exhausted me, and so against my will I began to drift off to sleep.

"Home sweet home," I muttered under my breath as I felt myself slipping into unconsciousness.


	2. Chapter 2

The next day I began therapy. My doctor's name was Joan Leland, and she insisted we start therapy immediately, ignoring my request to sleep in.

"Rose, for our first session I want to get to know you better," she began as she turned on a little tape-recorder. "But first, I need to know about your blood disorder. Is there anything we need to be aware of about your condition? The files we were given were quite vague."

"I take two pills when I wake up, and two pills before I go to bed. That's all you need to know."

"Your disorder doesn't give you any problems?"

"Not if I take my pills."

"Who is your doctor, and what exactly would happen if you didn't take your medicine?"

"I don't remember ever meeting the guy, all I know is that his name's J. Reko, and he delivers me my pills every now and again. I have no idea what would happen if I went off my medicine, other than that I would die. Would you like me to go off my meds and see what happens?"

"Of course not. Why don't you tell me about yourself," she said to change the subject.

"What's there to say?" I said. "I wouldn't know how to begin when it comes to describing myself, because no one can honestly describe themself. They always leave out their flaws and exaggerate their skills to make themselves feel good. So even if I thought I could accurately describe myself, I'd probably be wrong."

"Why don't we start from the beginning. What was your childhood like? I understand you were raised in an orphanage."

"Yeah, I was raised by nuns. They were selfless and kind and always put the kid's needs before their own."

"Is that how they treated you?"

"Sort of. They were kind to me, but they always tried to keep me away from the other kids. And whenever anyone came to look for a child to adopt they made me hide in my room so they wouldn't see me. They always acted strangely around me, but they never did tell me why, though."

"So you were never adopted?"

"I almost was, once. I ran away when I was seven and was found by a couple who took me in. It started out okay, but after just one day it... ended badly."

"What happened?"

"I'd rather not talk about it. All that matters is that I ended up back at the orphanage and the incident taught me to never run away again. I didn't leave again until they kicked me out when I turned sixteen."

"Do you have anything more to say about your childhood?" asked Dr. Leland.

"That's pretty much my seventeen years in a nutshell."

"Then why don't we move on to why you're here. I know what happened that night, you were raped and beaten, and you fought back, but why did you kill people who had no part in the attack? You didn't stop killing until the cops subdued you with a tazer."

"I killed the guys who attacked me, but it wasn't enough. Killing made me feel more alive than I've felt in a long time."

"The people you killed had lives, you know. They had people who loved them who are now mourning them, they had lives to live, lives you stole. Does that mean nothing to you?"

"I've thought about that a lot, actually. To hold the lives of others in your hand and decide their fate is a powerful thing. It was kind of funny to think about really, that someone like me could have that kind of power over another. I'm nothing special and I have no power over my own life, yet I had power over the lives of the people I murdered. That's why I kept killing, because that feeling I experienced was like a rush, a high, and I wanted more."

"You couldn't stop yourself?"

"No, I could've stopped myself at any time, but I didn't want to. That's why I'm here, and not in Blackgate," I told her simply.

"I see," said Dr. Leland, sounding a bit concerned. "Why don't we stop here for today and we'll pick up again next week."

"Like I have any say in the matter," I said as Joan pressed a button and a guard came to escort me back to my cell.

"Hold on just a second," said Joan as we were about to exit the room. She came up to me and studied my face. "There's something familiar about you, but I can't put my finger on it."

"Well, a lot of people have blonde hair and blue eyes, so I could look like anyone."

She ignored my sarcasm and said, "No, it's not just in your face. There's something about you... Oh well, nevermind. I'll see you next week, Rose."

Later that day, the same guard let me out of my cell and let me go to the common room. I was told I was allowed one hour of time in the common room a day, as well as an hour for each meal, and then it was back to my cell to while away the hours. On one side there were several patients sitting at tables doing activities or talking to each other. On the other there was hardly anyone, but the people who were there I immediately recognized as Rogues. They were gathered around a TV and seemed to be arguing about something, and I realized why no one else was on that side. The other patients were afraid to go anywhere near them, for good reason.

"Hey Rose!" someone called from one of the tables, who turned out to be Zelda. "Get over here!"

I went over to where she was sitting and found her with three other people.

"Guys, this is the new girl. Rose, meet some of your fellow crazies."

One of them, a girl with light brown hair and a face full of freckles, jumped up and hugged me as though we were old friends. "Hi Rose, I'm Bree. We've been waiting for you to arrive."

"You've been waiting for me?" I said, taken aback by her words and the hug.

"Zelda's therapy sessions have recently been centered around teaching her to not kill her roomates," said a boy with sandy blonde hair, a scottish accent, and a devilish grin. "I'm Johnny Dare, pleased to make your acquaintance, miss Rose."

The third girl, who had olive skin and inky black hair, opened her mouth to say something, but seemed to lose focus and stared off into space. She then grasped the sides of her head and began rocking back and forth as she muttered gibberish to herself.

"Um, is she okay?" I asked as I sat down.

"She'll be fine," Zelda assured. "Gwen's a schizo, and her hallucinations tend to be like LSD. Sometimes it's a good trip, other times not so good." She pushed Gwen onto the floor, but Gwen didn't seem to notice, as she continued muttering to herself with her eyes shut.

Just then, another girl approached the table. She had hair that looked almost white that reached down to her waist, and in her arms was a headless baby doll.

"Hey Holly!" said Bree cheerfully. "Whatcha doin?"

"My baby's sick, can you help me take care of him?"

"Of course!" said Bree as she got up from the table. "Are they going to get the baby a new head?"

"They said they're working on it," said Holly without making eye-contact with anyone. "Help me take care of him."

"What are friends for?" said Bree as she and Holly walked away. As they did, I heard Holly begin to hum The Itsy Bitsy Spider.

I stayed there a little while longer and played board games with Zelda and Johnny. There weren't many game options, and most of the games that might have actually been entertaining were missing pieces, so we eventually chose Connect 4. At some point Gwen seemed to escape her hallucinations and joined the game. Even though it was technically a two-player game we managed to make it work with extra people. Eventually we had to leave to go to the cafeteria, and on our way there we were joined by another of Zelda's friends.

"Zelda!" the girl whispered excitedly with a southern twang as we waited in line for our food. "You'll never guess what I did!"

"You stole something that has actual value on the market for once?" said Zelda as she rolled her eyes.

"It doesn't have much value on the market, but it's still valuable, in a way." She reached into the pocket of her jumpsuit and pulled out an ordinary looking coin. But then she turned it around and revealed the scarred side.

"Is that Two-Face's coin?" Johnny asked incredulously.

"I pick-pocketed it from him on the way here, I couldn't resist," she said proudly.

"Wow Kira, I'm impressed," said Zelda. "What are you going to do with it?"

"I don't know, keep it I guess, and hope that Two-Face doesn't find out. He'd kill me if he found out."

As if on cue, a loud bang echoed through the cafeteria. Two-Face had flipped over a table in rage, and many guards were trying to get him under control while the other Rogues who had been sitting at that table watched in amusement.

"Who took my coin!" he shouted, the unscarred side of his face turning red with anger. "I swear I'll rip the person who did it to shreds!"

"If any of you took Mr. Dent's coin, please return it to him as soon as possible," announced a flustered looking doctor.

"Maybe I should give it back," said Kira nervously as we moved through the line. "I don't want him to kill me."

"I say we use it to buy a soda from the vending machine," said Zelda.

"Yes, let's do that," agreed Johnny.

"No, we should give the coin back before he kills everyone in here, more specifically, me," said Kira as we got out of line and searched for a table. I stared at my food with dread, it almost looked normal but smelled wrong.

"You're no fun," said Zelda. "Why are you going all girl-scout on us all of a sudden?"

We found a table with three people already sitting there. Two appeared to be glued together, making out passionately as though they were the only ones in the room. The other was a girl who picked at her food and didn't seem to notice us.

"Get a room!" Johnny said, which the couple ignored.

"Just slip it in one of the doctor's pockets, then he'll never know it was you," I suggested.

"I think she should keep it," said a girl as she sat down at our table. I recognized her immediately as one of the most famous people in Gotham.

"Aren't you Jessica-Belle Monroe, the singer?" I asked.

"That's me," she said with her famous smile. "You a fan?"

"No, I saw you get arrested on the news a few weeks ago. You were put in Arkham for drug abuse, right?"

Zelda snorted and said, "Drug abuse, right. That's what she wants her fans to think. Mommy and Daddy paid hundreds of thousands to cover up the real story."

"The real story is much more interesting," said Jess-Belle, seemingly unaffected by what Zelda had said. "Anyway, Kira should keep the coin. After all, it's not every day you bring a supervillain to his knees."

"I think I'll go with Rose's idea, it sounds a lot safer."

"Fine, do what you want," said Jess-Belle uncaringly.

For the rest of lunch, we weren't really able to maintain conversation. Not much happened in the asylum, as I was learning fast. The main topic was about a girl named Scarlet who had recently tried to kill herself, again. The girl refused to eat and cut herself whenever she got a hold of anything sharp, and her suicide attempt didn't seem to surprise anyone. Other topics were mentioned, but none that were particularly interesting.

After we had finished our food, or come close to finishing, we left to be taken back to our cells. On the way a guard approached Kira and made her stand against the wall while he patted her down. At first I wondered why he was doing this and why she wasn't protesting, until he started pulling things out of her pockets. Plastic forks and spoons, salt and pepper shakers, and a bunch of other worthless things, including some of the food. I realized why she had been "unable to stop herself" from stealing the coin.

"I found Two-Face's coin," announced the man as he held it up.

"Could you speak up a bit, I don't think they heard you in Australia!" hissed Kira.

"None of the guards or doctors will tell him who took it." Kira was relieved, but I read between the lines and knew what he actually meant. None of the staff would tell on her, but that wouldn't stop any of the patients from doing so.

Before I could mention this to her, I was dragged back to my cell. On the way I passed all the other crazies doing all sorts of crazy things. Some were wailing just for the heck of it, others were compulsively arranging and rearranging their few items, and I even saw one guy licking his glass door. I also saw a girl strapped down to her cot with a feeding tube up her nose, fighting her restraints and screaming to be released. No doubt it was Scarlet, the girl they had been talking about.

The nameless guard deposited me and Zelda back in our cell. Zelda laid down as if to sleep, but not before ranting about how much she hated sharing a cell. I didn't care, as long as she wasn't trying to smother me I couldn't care less what she did.

Later I was taken to dinner, and after that I spent the rest of the day staring at the ceiling. After a while the screams seemed to fade away, and the weight of my situation seemed to finally sink in. The day I'd had today, while not the worst I'd ever had, would be repeated over and over for until I was released. It was like my life back at the orphanage, except here I was even more trapped than before. What if I was never "cured"? What if I was doomed to spend the rest of my life here in this hellhole? I'd lose my mind for real if that happened. I felt claustrophobic, like I was buried alive and running out of air. I needed to escape, I would not let them keep me here. But where would I go? I'd most likely stay in Gotham, but what would become of me? I didn't want to blend in with the masses, I wanted to make something of myself, but I had no idea how. That was why I felt more trapped than before, because as a child I'd always had hope that I would have a good future once I left the orphanage, but that hope seemed to have died the second I'd been checked in. I told myself I would get out somehow, someday, and find my place in the world, but for now I would have to survive this, but I didn't know how or where to start. I felt like Dorothy lost in Oz, and I had to find my own Kansas.

_**Author's Note: **__Don't quit reading yet, we'll be leaving the asylum soon, I promise. If you have any tips or suggestions on how I can improve my writing, feel free to let me know, constructive criticism is always welcome. If you like what you're reading, please leave a review, I value your opinions and I find them to be very encouraging, especially on a story like this. It's been the hardest to write of all my fan-fics yet, and I hope you enjoy it. :) _


	3. Chapter 3

Three weeks passed, and I hadn't made much progress in solving my problem. I was sitting in the asylum garden on one of the benches, admiring the beauty of the plants. Poison Ivy had done a good job growing them, and despite their beauty I knew better than to touch them. They may have been harmless, but with Ivy I figured it would be prudent to just assume that they were all deadly.

All of a sudden, a boy ran up to me and grabbed me by the shoulders and tightly embraced me. The first thing I noticed about him was a long, diagonal white scar that ran down from the right side of his forehead down to the left side of his chin.

"Hazel, I'm so happy to see you!" he said delightedly. "Where have you been, I've been so worried!"

"I think you have me mistaken for someone else," I said gently, a bit creeped out by the way he was holding me. "My name is Rose, not Hazel."

"Don't be silly, now let's go back home, Sweetheart."

He let go of me but held my hand and tried to lead me away, and when I refused to follow him he began to grow angry.

"Hazel, I said let's go."

"I'm not Hazel!" I said as I tried to escape his grip on me.

Thankfully, some of the guards noticed this and dragged him away as he continued to yell at me.

"That's Lee Carter," said a voice from behind me. I turned and nearly jumped out of my skin when I saw it was the Joker. He sat down on the bench I had been sitting on and motioned for me to join him. He was holding a small plastic bag of jellybeans, he popped one in his mouth and offered me one.

"These are to reward my recent good behavior," he explained.

"Good behavior?" I asked, wondering what exactly the asylum considered to be "good behavior."

"In here, for me at least, good behavior means not hurting any of the patients, guards, or doctors, and not causing any property damage. I haven't done any of that in a while, so I get a reward. Therapy doesn't work, so they're resorting to training me like a dog," he said with a laugh. I cracked a smile at that and accepted the jellybean he had offered.

"So why did Lee think I was Hazel? Who is Hazel, anyway?" I asked him.

He tossed a jellybean into the air and caught it in his mouth, then answered, "Hazel was his girlfriend, before he killed her. After he killed her he apparently forgot he had killed her and kidnapped another woman he thought was Hazel, the woman he loved but murdered for some reason. That's how he got that scar on his face, she got him good with a butcher knife when he tried to keep her from escaping." He paused for a moment, then, as if to be polite, asked, "So how are you enjoying the asylum?"

"Is that a trick question?"

"Not really. I find that the asylum is a good place to go when you want to clear your head or just relax for a while."

"Usually when people want to clear their head and relax they go to a beach or something," I pointed out. I was beginning to feel more and more comfortable around the Joker, and even though I knew that was a bad thing, I didn't care.

"Well, it is my only legal place of residence, after all. Three hots and a cot, as they say. The only place I can truly call home. Sure it's annoying, it's like a big family reunion where you just want to strangle all your annoying relatives. Do you feel the same, or is that just me?"

"Not really, I don't think of any of these people in a familial way."

"That's because it's your first time. But after your second or third time you'll come to think of this place as one big dysfunctional family that you are now a part of."

"I only plan on one stay," I told him, appalled by the very thought of spending that much time here.

"We'll see," he said as he popped another jellybean in his mouth. "By the way, I was wondering if you'd be interested in accompanying me on a trip to the record room."

"You want me to break into the record room with you?" I asked, surprised. "Why would you want me to come with you?"

"I figured you'd like to read your file, I assume your doctor refuses to tell you what they think is wrong with you on the grounds that they think it would be detrimental to your recovery."

"How did you know?"

"You forget, I've been where you are. Sort of. My point is, I know you want to read that file, and I'm giving you a golden opportunity. You won't get caught when you're with me," he said as he gave me a naughty grin.

"What would I have to do? And when would we do it?" I asked. I had yet to learn how to open my cell door from the inside, much less get around without attracting the attention of the guards.

"Follow my lead, right now." Without explaining himself, he stood and motioned for me to follow him. As I stood to follow him, three guards silently joined us like an entourage into the long, dark hallway. Each of the three men carried guns, and although they were letting Joker lead the way they were ready and on guard for anything. The Joker turned into another hallway and as he did he spun around and grabbed two of the men and banged their heads together, knocking them out. As the third drew his gun the Joker took the gun from him and smacked him in the head and knocked him out, too.

"Feel free to jump in and help anytime, Snow," he said as he began dragging two of them away, leaving me with the third. We locked the men away in a utility closet and then continued on toward the record room. Once we reached it the Joker produced a set of keys he must have picked off one of the guards and opened the door. Inside were at least a dozen rows of files.

I looked to him and said, "We're going to get caught."

He shrugged and said, "If you're worried about getting in trouble you might as well leave now and tell on me. But if you don't care about getting busted then start searching through the Q's."

I did as he said and began searching for my file. After a lot of digging I finally found it. I opened it up slowly, a bit apprehensive as to what I would find. The first thing I noticed was a picture of myself. I generally didn't spend too much time staring at myself in mirrors, and I did the same with the photo. I skipped through my general info and finally found my diagnosis.

_The patient does not display any remorse for her crime, and does not believe she needs treatment. She is aware that what she did was wrong but doesn't seem to care very much. She does not show any signs of psychosis, other than her lack of empathy for her victims. Her actions and behavior suggest an anti-social personality disorder, or to be more specific, Psychopathy. However, more information will be needed to make a solid diagnosis._

Psychopathy? As in psychopath? When I found my file, I had expected it to say something like, well, I don't know what I expected, but it certainly wasn't psychopath. Of course, it did say that more information was needed to make a solid diagnosis, but the fact that they suspected that I was a psychopath was enough. Strangely, it didn't bother me very much. It was a surprise, but I was okay with it. I put the file back and went to find the Joker, who was flipping through a file of his own. He had a few more files stacked beside him, and he seemed to be searching for something in particular in all of them, because once he was satisfied with one he would toss it over his shoulder and start digging through another.

"I found my file," I told him.

Without looking up he said, "And?"

"And apparently, I'm a psychopath." It felt weird to say it out loud.

"Join the club," he said, still without looking up but with a smile. "Why don't you take a peek at your friend's files. You could even read mine if you want, but it would take a few days to read through the whole thing," he chuckled.

"I'm not sure I should violate their privacy like that."

"Trust me, given the chance any of them would do the same to you. Besides, it doesn't matter what you do in here, because you're insane! The asylum is responsible for your actions, not you."

"You're a bad influence, you know that?"

He finally looked at me and said with a smirk, "Like you need me to influence you to do bad things. Now run along, I'm very busy. This isn't playtime, this is serious business."

I did as he said and searched through the files. I decided to respect the privacy of my new friends despite what the Joker had said, mostly because Zelda, Johnny, Bree, Kira and Gwen were the _only_ friends I'd ever had. I instead flipped through files at random. I read one about a med student who had gone whacko named Sam Beckett, a chainsaw killer named Nigel Oliver, and I even accidentally stumbled across Jess-Belle's file. I read it and saw that Zelda had been telling the truth. She apparently had talked some of her fans into going on a shooting-spree that ended in over two dozen people dead, and they believed she had talked her male-model boyfriend into killing himself. I couldn't believe she had done those things. It wasn't the acts themselves, but the fact that in doing those things she had given up everything she had. Fame, fortune, all gone. I had never had anything close to those things, and though I didn't care for either, I couldn't believe she would sacrifice so much for a cell at Arkham.

I had just been about to violate someone else's privacy by reading another file, when the Joker called to me from his side of the room. "Time to go, kiddo. I'm done here, and they're probably already looking for us."

"Whose files were you looking through, and why?" I asked him before we left the room.

"Just checking a few things, making sure everything's in order for my next plan. It'll be a doozy, you wait and see."

I wanted to ask him about his plan, but we had to be quiet while we snuck down the halls. The Joker was a master at stealth, successfully getting us past every guard we came to without getting caught. If I had been by myself I probably would've been busted by the first guard I came to. As soon as we could, we separated and I returned to my cell. Luckily no one seemed to realize I had been missing.

I flopped down on my cot and felt something in my pocket. Curious, I reached in and found a little slip of paper tucked inside. When I unfolded it, I saw that it was a message from the Joker.

_Had fun kiddo, we'll have to do that again sometime. By the way, don't tell Harley about this, she'd wring my neck if she found out I broke the rules with someone else instead of her haha! See you around, Snow. -J_

I had a feeling when the Joker said that Harley would wring his neck, that he actually meant she would wring _my_ neck, and the fact that I wasn't an actual threat wouldn't matter to her. Still, I had to admit I had enjoyed my time with the Joker as well. As I spent more and more time with him I came to view him as less than a threat and more as a friend. Ironically, I trusted him more than I did anyone else in here, although I maintained a healthy amount of fear, as well. After all, trusting the Joker completely was like signing your own death certificate.


	4. Chapter 4

The next day at what I guessed was about noon, I was in the communal shower washing my hair. I was frustrated that I wasn't allowed a razor, and would have to put up with fuzzy legs until they trusted me enough to shave. As I scrubbed myself down, a little ways over from me Poison Ivy and Harley Quinn were also showering.

"I'm telling you Harl, you should come with me. I'll be breaking out in just a few days, and we can finally have some girl time."

"It's tempting Red, but I can't. Mistah J-"

"Mistah J, Mistah J," said Ivy mockingly. "Seriously Harley, don't stay here because of him. His doctor's got him in solitary for beating up his guards and causing trouble, you won't even get to see him. Come with me, at least for a little while."

"But it's not just that Red. Mistah J says Operation Junior is finally gonna to be put in action. He's been talkin' about it for years, and now it's finally happening!"

"Operation Junior? Really? Do you even know what it is?"

"Not exactly, but I know some things about it. Besides, Mistah J promised he'd tell me all about it soon, it's gonna be big Red, I can tell ya that. He's been workin' on it for almost twenty years, it just might be his most brilliant and amazing plan yet! So you understand why I can't go with you, 'cause I wouldn't miss out on this for the whole world!"

"He's probably just going to leave you here anyway, whatever his plan is."

"He promised, and Mistah J is a man of his word," said Harley without a hint of doubt.

"Okay Harl, just remember, you're always welcome at my place," said Ivy as she put a hand on her shoulder.

"Thanks Red, you're a real pal."

Harley and Poison Ivy were leaving the shower when Harley accidentally bumped into me. "Hey, watch it!" she said as they moved past.

I finished washing and left the shower, wondering what the Joker's plan was. If he really had spent nearly two decades on it had to be huge, and very bad for Gotham.

After I put my jumpsuit back on I decided to go to the common room. On my way there, I saw the police dragging in a boy who looked like he'd just been in a fight. Actually, at that moment he was trying to fight off the police bringing him in, without success. He seemed to be realizing that he couldn't win, and was slowly calming down. He caught my eye, and before I could turn away he winked at me.

"Come along now, fighting us won't solve anything," said one of the cops struggling to keep him restrained. "Just be glad you're being kept here and not at Blackgate where you actually belong."

I looked out of the corner of my eye, and saw that he was no longer watching me, too busy swearing at the cops bringing him in.

I decided to forget about him and continued on to the common room. When I got there, I was surprised to see Bree beating up Jess-Belle.

"Take back what you said, you witch!" yelled Bree as she punched her in the face.

"Get off me, you bubble-headed ditz!" Jess-Belle shouted back.

A couple of guards rushed over to break up the fight, but Zelda got in their away to stop them, saying, "This is the most entertainment I've gotten in weeks! Let them kill each other!"

Eventually more guards came in and broke up the fight.

"I'm not done with her yet!" screamed Bree as they pulled her away.

Jess-Belle whipped out a compact and gasped at her reflection. "You'll pay for this one, you little tramp!"

Bree tried to attack her again, but one of the guards held her back and said, "Enough! The three of you are going in solitary until further notice."

After they had been led away, I said to Johnny, "Why was Bree acting that way? I've never heard her say anything bad about anyone, and now this?"

"Jess-Belle made a joke about her being bi-polar," said Johnny simply.

"Is she bi-polar?"

"Yeah, but she doesn't like it when people make jokes about it."

"Is that why she's here? Bi-polar disorder isn't something you generally lock people up for."

"It is when it gets out of hand. Bree's usually the nicest girl you'll ever meet, but when she gets angry or upset, then she's dangerous. She's hurt people before, only to regret it after she calmed down. They thought it'd be best to just keep her in here until they could get that under control."

"I see. You up for a game of cards?"

I spent the rest of the hour playing cards with Johnny. We mostly played Blackjack, but at some point we got bored and instead tried to build a house of cards.

"At least with Zelda gone I won't have to worry about her knocking the cards down," said Johnny as he carefully set up two more cards.

"Johnny, if you don't mind my asking, why are you in here?" The reason I asked him such a personal question was that with most people it was obvious what was wrong with them, while others seemed perfectly normal, and he was sort of in the middle.

He gave me a devious grin and said, "I'm a pathological liar."

"That explains a lot, actually. Like last week when you told me you wanted nothing more in life than to see the ocean for the first time, only to regale Bree and Holly tales of your life at sea the very next day."

"You just contributed that to general insanity, right?"

"I guess I did, and I apologize for my hasty diagnosis. But wait a minute, does that mean everything you've told me is a lie?"

"Maybe. I don't always lie, but you can never tell when I'm telling the truth. For instance, I could have been lying about being a pathological liar, and my name might not even be Johnny. "

"You just told me that Bree is bi-polar, we're you lying about that too?"

"Nope," he said, his grin growing wider.

"I give up," I said, accepting defeat. I couldn't continue this if I had no idea what was true and what wasn't.

"Score one for Johnny, zero for Rose. It's no wonder why my psychiatrist hates me so much."

By then my hour was up and I was taken back to my cell. Even though I didn't mind sharing with Zelda, it was nice to have the entire cell to myself for once. I spent the rest of the day sitting on my bed letting my mind wander, and when it seemed like nighttime I decided to go to sleep. That was one of the problems with living here, it was so easy to completely lose track of time. For all I knew, I could've been sitting there for days, or just a few seconds. In a way it was nice to get away from it, like a vacation from reality in a sense. But usually it was just frustrating to almost never know what time it was.

I laid down to go to sleep, but when my head hit the pillow I felt something underneath it. I picked up the pillow and saw what looked sort of like an old cell phone painted lavender, except it only had three buttons: play, yes, and no. Unable to deny my curiosity, I pushed play, and words began to appear on the screen.

_Hello Rose, are you tired of your dull, drab, monotonous lifestyle? Maybe you just want to get out of the asylum, or maybe you want to cross over to the dark side, but don't know how to do it or where to begin. Maybe you need someone to guide you on the path of supervillainy, someone who can teach you and help you reach your full potential. If your answer is yes, then have I got an offer for you! I'm looking for an apprentice, a protégé, someone to pick up my mantle and keep my legacy alive after I'm gone. An heir if you will. But I can't choose just anybody, so I'll be having a contest of sorts, a game to decide who is worthy of my criminal throne. Are you that person? Are you interested in becoming the Joker's sidekick? But be warned, playing the Joker's game could lead to an untimely demise, but surely that won't stop you. The choice is yours, and there is no punishment for chickening out, but I do so hope that you'll choose yes._

The message ended, and I had to replay it in my head a few times for it to sink in. The Joker was looking for a sidekick, an apprentice, and he had chosen me? To say I was dumbfounded would have been the understatement of the year. Once I got over the initial shock, I realized I had a serious decision to make. If I chose yes, I'd be getting out of the asylum. But I'd have to play the Joker's game, and risk my life in doing so. I weighed my options: stay and try to get rehabilitated, or go and risk death. Stay and try to fit in with society, or play for a once in a lifetime opportunity. The more I thought about it, the more I began to see that the choice was obvious. There was no way I'd ever fit in with society, I'd tried and failed. I wasn't sure why, but I was a misfit in this world, a reject, cast out for reasons that eluded me. Sure, there might come a day when I might manage to make a life for myself out there, but so far it seemed rather unlikely, and not just because I was a convicted murderer. Not to mention, but to do so I would have to become one of the sheep, the undefined masses. I would have to be broken to fit the mold, and I didn't want that. I wanted to find where I belonged, to become what I was meant to be, to leave something behind when I died. I had never seriously considered a life of crime, much less as an apprentice to one of the rogues, but I couldn't deny the temptation of it. I could die, but surprisingly, that didn't matter to me. I knew there might come a day when I would regret the choice I made that night, but that didn't bother me. I was tired of trying to fit in, I wanted to make a name for myself, to make certain that the society that had rejected me could never forget my name, and who better to help me with that than the Joker himself?

I pushed the yes button, and immediately my cell door opened. Quietly, I peeked out my cell to check for any guards but was surprised to see no one. I wondered how the Joker had gotten rid of the guards but didn't let it stop me from leaving my cell. The message on the cellphone had disappeared, replaced with an arrow pointing to the right. I followed its instructions, and as I did so ran into Kira.

"Kira!" I whispered, afraid of getting caught. "What are you doing out of your cell?"

"I might ask you the same thing," she replied as she tried to hide a purple cellphone behind her back.

"You got one of these too?" I asked as I showed her the phone. I really shouldn't have been as surprised as I was, considering the message had clearly said I would be competing, which meant that I would be competing against other people.

"Yeah, weird huh? I mean, the Joker looking for an heir? I guess I just always believed he would go on forever, ya know?"

"I know what you mean. So you're really accepting his offer?"

"Someone squealed on me. I don't know who it was, but someone told Two-Face that I stole his stupid coin and he's gonna kill me, even though it really wasn't my fault. I can't help it, ya know? So I figure that for the time being I'm safer with the Joker than Two-Face, 'cause at least the Joker ain't got a vendetta against me."

A few minutes later, we were joined by someone else, the boy I had seen brought in earlier, also holding a purple cellphone.

"So, you guys got an invite too, I see," he said, as though he were already sizing us up as potential threats.

"Yeah, you got a problem with that?" I asked him.

He smirked and cast me another wink as he said, "The more the merrier, I suppose."

"I wonder if the Joker is only choosing from inmates in Arkham, or if he's bringin' in people from outside," mused Kira.

"Yeah, we wouldn't want to discriminate against people who are of sound mind, they might want a piece of the action too," I said, which elicited a chuckle from the boy.

"Who are ya, anyway?" Kira asked him.

"Edward Gage, ma'am. And who are you two lovely ladies?"

"I'm Kira, and this is Rose," Kira introduced.

"Pleasure to meet the both of you," said Edward with a little bow.

We continued to follow the directions without running into a single guard until we were led to the doors that led outside. As we opened the doors, I was nearly overwhelmed by the smell of fresh air, as it had been so long since I had truly been outside. The moon was full that night, and even though it had only been three weeks I felt like I had begun to forget what the moon looked like. Even though the moon hadn't changed from the last time I had seen it, it was still a magnificent sight.

Our cellphones suddenly shut off after they led us to a huge truck with the back open and a light coming from inside. Normally I wouldn't have been very eager to get into such a suspicious looking vehicle, but after everything else I had done tonight this was nothing.

As I was about to climb in, Kira said, "I don't know Rose, maybe we shouldn't do this."

"It's this or Two-Face," I reminded her.

She gulped and said, "Yeah, I guess compared to him this truck is safer than a child's toy. I have a feeling he wouldn't need to flip a coin to decide if I deserved punishment."

I climbed in and then helped her and Edward up, and once we were in we saw that we weren't alone. There were already nine people inside, and less than ten minutes later seven more people joined us as well, and once they had the door slammed shut and the truck began to move. I saw many faces, some familiar, others not so familiar.

"Drake!" said a girl as she ran into the arms of a boy. "Can you believe it? We're finally out of that awful place."

"And you thought we would never get out of there, Elise," said Drake as he kissed her.

"I'm so excited!" said Bree. "I'm finally getting out of the asylum!"

"You do realize that by doing this you may be getting out of the asylum, but you could very well end up dead, right? Out of the frying pan and into the fire." said a boy I didn't know.

"Lighten up Sam," said Elise. "I know the message said we could die, but it sure beats the alternative: staying at Arkham."

"Actually Elise, you and Drake weren't exactly forced to stay at Arkham," said Zelda. "You two could have gone to Blackgate, but instead you fooled the judge into thinking you weren't sane enough to handle it. Same with Edward, none of you even deserve to have a place here, you just thought the asylum would be easier to deal with."

"Oh no, we're just as insane as you are," said Drake. He and Elise both let out loud wolf howls, as if to prove how crazy they were.

"Now you see, that howling should have sounded much more primal and depraved, you two make me sick," said Zelda.

"I think what Sammy was trying to say is that if you climbed aboard the Joker's crazy train to get out of an indefinite stay at Arkham, you'll probably wish you had never left the comfort of your padded cell," said Jess-Belle, her right eye black from Bree's assault on her earlier. "But for those of us who came because we actually want to be the Joker's apprentice, this is a once in a lifetime opportunity that we'd be crazy to pass up."

There was very little conversation for the rest of the trip. The anticipation was palpable, no doubt everyone had the same questions as I did. Where were we going, and what would become of us once we got there? I wondered how many had come because they wanted to escape, and how many came because they wanted a shot at becoming heir to one of the most notorious criminals in history.

It took a surprisingly short time to reach our destination. There were no windows in the back of the truck of course, so we had no idea where we were going. I wondered if we were leaving Gotham; doubtful, as the Joker almost never left Gotham, but still possible. Finally, the truck came to a stop and the back door opened. We didn't waste any time in getting out, and a fight nearly broke out as we each tried to get out first. Once I was out, I quickly took in my surroundings. At first, it seemed we hadn't even left Gotham, in fact, we were standing in the middle of the street. But I looked closer, and gasped when I realized where we were, as did many others. Although I had never been here before, I had seen footage of this place and heard the story behind it. It was a desolate place, hardly anyone lived here because of all that had happened here nearly twenty years ago. Many buildings had been destroyed by missiles, and though most of them had been rebuilt or replaced, there were still crumbled buildings every direction you looked. The only reason anyone lived here at all was because the mayor had actually begun paying people to move and set up businesses here. They had tried to make this place part of Gotham again, and someday they might succeed, but after nearly two decades the place was still, for the most part, a ghost town, making it the perfect place for the Joker to do whatever it was he planned to do with us.

The Joker had brought us to Arkham City.

The night was cold and windy, and after being trapped inside the asylum with heating for so long, the chill startled me. We weren't outside for very long though, for as soon as we were all out of the truck it drove off and disappeared and was replaced by a group of men. It was obvious from the clown masks they wore that they were some of the Joker's henchmen, and without a word they directed us toward an enormous tarp that made it impossible to tell what exactly was underneath it, but it had to be a building of some kind that was under construction. The tarp was suddenly pulled back by some unseen force, revealing what could only have been the Joker's hideout, if you could even call it that. Generally when you think of a hideout, you think of a place that blends in and doesn't call attention to itself so that you can hide without being found, but this place was the complete opposite.

It was a mansion, so big it took up an entire block. It was painted in many different colors, all neon and fluorescent, causing each and every color to stand out in the light of the moon as if it were daytime. The walls were a rich shade of lavender, the trim an eye-shocking shade of orange, and the roof an obnoxiously bright shade of yellow. The door was emerald green, and the sidewalk leading up to the door was painted in a pattern of red and black, with symbols from cards painted on them such as clubs and diamonds. The wrought-iron fence that bordered it was also painted in a pattern of red and black, and the gate was built to resemble a smiley-face. It looked like a picture out of a child's coloring book, with everything painted the wrong color, but I could tell whoever had painted it had put a lot of time and effort into each and every detail. In fact, the colors actually seemed to flow perfectly together, though it didn't make it look any less strange and abnormal. In glowing mismatched letters high above the front door, as though they had been stolen from many different signs, there read _The Joker's Circus._

We were ushered inside, and the inside seemed to mirror the outside. It reminded me of my first and last trip to the carnival when I was seven. I had gotten lost in the funhouse which had frightened me, although looking back now, I was glad I had gotten lost in the funhouse, and not this madhouse. The first room we came to after entering had normal furniture like you would expect in the living room of any home, except for the colors, of course. Every wall seemed to glow in a different hue of neon, the colors mixed and paired together in combinations the likes of which I had never imagined. The floor was hardwood, but was painted purple with orange polka dots. There was a bright blue couch, a magenta coffee table, and a fishtank with a bunch of fish grinning back at us. We were then led down a long hallway, with many different colored doors and hundreds of news clippings pinned to the walls. A quick glance at a few of them told me that they were of the Joker's countless exploits over the years.

We were led into a large, spacious room that seemed to be the heart of the place, seeing as it somehow managed to be even brighter and more colorful than everything I had already seen. It seemed that the further into the house we went the more abstract the décor and color patterns became. On one side of the room the wall was made up of one big window, and on the other walls were several portraits that were either stolen or replicas of the real thing that had been tampered with and now bore big red grins and bleeding eyes. There were also some posters and flyers that looked like those you would see at a circus showing off the performers and freaks. The design of the place was starting to give me the creeps, but instead of making me regret my decision it only made me more excited for what was to come.

At the far end of the room there was a huge fireplace, and in front of it were two chairs facing away from us. I couldn't see who sat in them, but I could see a red-gloved hand held in a purple-gloved one. As if just hearing us come in, the Joker sprung up from his seat, a wide grin on his face. Harley Quinn stood up as well and immediately latched onto the Joker's arm. He tolerated this for a grand total of two seconds before roughly shoving her away, but the smile on his face never faltered.

"Welcome, my children!" he said, boundless energy radiating from him. "The lady and I are so happy you could join us, as we were afraid you wouldn't come. But now that you're all here, the fun can finally begin!"

"What kind of fun?" asked Edward warily.

"I'll explain things in the morning, but for now, you should all get to bed. We have a big day ahead of us tomorrow, and I won't have any sleepy-heads. Harl, be a dear and show them to their rooms."

"Sure thing, Puddin!" said Harley adoringly. "Come on kiddies, it's way past your bedtime."

Harley led us out of the room and up some stairs. She took us to a hallway with several doors on each side.

"Boy's dorms are on the left, girl's on the right," she said, pointing. "Inside you'll find plenty of bunk beds. Sleep tight you guys, don't let the bed bugs bite!"

Harley skipped away, and we girls split up with the boys and went into our separate dorms. Now, when Harley had said dorms and bunk beds, I had expected several rooms with one bunk bed inside each. But it turned out that it was two big rooms, one for each gender. On the inside, it appeared that there had once been walls dividing up the space into other rooms, but had been torn down, leaving one big room, five bunk beds in various colors of the rainbow, and no privacy. Exhausted, we immediately began choosing bunk beds and people to share them with. Beds went fast, and because I didn't move fast enough I was left with very few options of who to bunk with. I ended up with a girl I had seen before but had never spoken to. Her face was creamy white and she had raven black hair that reached far past her shoulders.

"Hi, I'm Rose," I said to introduce myself. I figured the bunk arrangements made tonight would be permanent, so I might as well be on good terms with my bunkmate. The girl looked up at me from where she was lying on the bottom bunk, as if scrutinizing me to decide if I was a worthy bunkmate. Her eyes were round and a deep shade of violet, and the way she looked at me, it was as if she were staring right through me. She then turned her gaze away without saying a word, as if forgetting I had ever been there.

"Um, excuse me?" I said, wondering what her problem was. Now, I'll admit I'm not the most sensitive person in the world when it comes to people's feelings, but I found it a tad rude that she would just ignore me like that. An insult would have been more polite.

"Don't mind her Rose, that's Silent Violet," said Zelda, who was sharing a bunk with Kira. "She's never spoken a single word since they brought her to the asylum a few years back. We don't even know her real name, we call her violet because of her weird eyes."

"I see," I said as I looked back down at her. I briefly wondered if she was deaf, but dismissed that idea, as she had obviously heard me before. I decided to let it go and climbed onto the top bunk, too tired to care about anything, much less other crazies like myself.


	5. Chapter 5

_**Author's Note:**__ This chapter turned out to be so long that I decided to split it into two parts. I've actually written a future chapter that has roughly the same amount of words as this and the next combined, but I feel that this one would work better broken into two parts. This chapter and chapter six are focused mainly on introducing you to the contestants so you can get to know them a little better for future chapters (If you have any questions about any the contestants, feel free to PM me). Because of this, these two chapters aren't the most exciting pieces of literature you'll ever read, but the chapters after these should be more interesting, so just be patient with me :) _

The next morning, I was woken up by the sound of an air horn being blown in my ear. Once I opened my eyes, however, I realized it was being blown into an intercom, not my ear, although it felt like my eardrum had ruptured.

The others seemed to all have the same reaction, some on the bottom bunks hitting their heads because they sat up so fast. The air horn finally stopped and was replaced by the voice of a certain jolly clown.

"Good morning, my little corn children! Please come down to the mess hall for breakfast, I want to see big happy faces!"

I didn't know what time it was, but despite my lack of sleep I was rested enough for whatever the Joker had in mind for us, which was more than the others could say. I was surprised to see two little pills in a plastic cup on the floor near my bed. The Joker must have read my file and had remembered my meds. What a guy.

"The sun's not even up yet," complained Jess-Belle. "I see no reason for me to be up before the sun is."

"You need all the beauty sleep you can get, don't you?" said Zelda, getting her a pillow to the face.

We exited our room just before the boys, and began our descent down the stairs. The problem was, we had no idea where the mess hall was.

"Unless the Joker sends someone to give us directions, I say we wander around until we find it," suggested Johnny. "Maybe we'll smell food at some point and we can follow our noses."

Left with no other options, we did just that. For over half an hour we opened door after door and couldn't find the mess hall, and we were all starving. Eventually, the Joker must have given up on us because he sent a woman with her face painted in clown makeup and wearing a rainbow wig to lead us there.

"This way," she ordered, in a tone that suggested we were intentionally wasting her time. She took us to a door which I swear we had already tried and had been a bathroom, but when we tried to tell her that she scowled at us and opened the door anyway, revealing a huge room with two long tables with benches, and at the front a kitchen that looked like one you would find in a restaurant. I wondered if the Joker had somehow built this place to act as one big optical illusion, or maybe the doors to the bathroom and the mess hall just looked the same.

We sat down at the tables as four other henchmen brought us plates of scrambled eggs and burnt toast. In the kitchen, I saw a dark-skinned man whom I took to be the cook laughing about something with Harley Quinn.

"Thanks again for lettin' me help, Cookie," she said as she hopped down from the counter she had been sitting on. "Mistah J says I'm a terrible cook, so I'm hopin' this'll help me cook better."

"Whether you learn to cook better or not, I'm just glad to have some help feeding these little rodents," he replied, apparently not caring that we could hear every word he said.

After we had finished eating the food, which turned out to be even worse than what they fed us at Arkham if that was even possible, the Joker appeared, grinning from ear to ear. Right behind him was a man carrying a camera.

"I trust you all enjoyed breakfast?" he asked. No one answered. "Well then, it's time to get down to business. Here's the deal. As you all already know, I'm looking for an apprentice. But what you don't know is how I'm going to choose. We're going to play a game to decide who is worthy for the position, and it will all be televised. We're on live right now, actually. Every three days, or whenever I feel like it, you will all participate in a challenge of some kind that will teach you valuable skills to assist you in your life of crime. But here's the rub, for every challenge, one of you will die." When he said this, he was met with several shocked gasps. "You'll be split into two teams, and if no one dies during the actual challenge, then the losing team will be forced to vote to decide who'll kick the bucket. It's very simple really, but if you've changed your mind, leave now. If you choose to stay, after this moment there is no going back."

The Joker paused to give us a chance to leave, but no one did. Whether out of unwillingness to quit or pride or lack of fear, not one person bailed, which pleased the Joker.

"Very good. Now, before we begin today's challenge, you'll be split up into two teams. Two captains will be chosen, and they will choose their teammates."

Harley skipped over and did eeny, meeny, miney, mo to pick the team captains, which turned out to be Edward and Jess-Belle. They moved to stand in front of us and began to choose who they wanted for their teams.

Jess-Belle chose first. "Sam."

Then Edward took his turn. "Rose."

I moved to join him, surprised I had been chosen so quickly.

Jess-Belle went again. "Drake."

Edward then said, "Finn."

"Kira."

"Zelda."

"Johnny."

"Elise."

Jess-Belle again took her turn. "Jack."

Edward took his turn. "Lee."

"Scarlet."

"Nigel."

"Gwen."

"Violet."

"Holly."

"Bree."

"Hunter."

"Hey wait a minute, they have ten players and we only have nine!" said Edward, outraged.

"You're right, and we simply _can't_ have that," said the Joker, as if appalled by the very thought. "As much as I love odd numbers, nineteen players simply won't do. But don't worry, I'm sure we'll find a spare to complete your team around here somewhere." He then whistled, and a huge henchman appeared carrying a squirming person over his shoulder. He set the person down and then left. The person, whoever it was, had their hands and feet bound and a sack covering their face. The Joker removed the sack, revealing it to be Robin. His mouth was gagged and he tried to escape his bonds, but with his feet tied together tripped and would have fallen if the Joker hadn't caught him.

"Now Robin, I know you're eager to play with your new friends, but that will have to wait until later," giggled Joker as he removed the gag.

"Let me go, Clown," snarled Robin as he tried unsuccessfully to free his hands. "What do you want with me?"

"I just thought you'd want to join in on the fun. I trust one of my henchmen told you about my little game?"

"Yeah, and if you think I'm going to play along then you've truly lost your mind."

"Actually, you will play along, for two reasons. One, even if I did let you go or you did manage to escape, you wouldn't be able to leave. I have a force-field covering the entire city to keep you in and uninvited guests out."

If this surprised Robin, he didn't show it. "Just because you've trapped me here doesn't mean I have to do what you tell me."

"Oh, but that's where you're wrong, Bird Boy, hence the second reason. I have thirty bombs hidden throughout Gotham, and if you break any the rules or don't participate, then I'll set them off, killing hundreds of people."

Shock flashed across Robin's face, but was quickly replaced with grim determination. "Show me proof of these bombs."

"I don't have to, because even if I'm lying about the bombs, how would you know?" said Joker as he pulled a detonator out of his pocket. "Maybe I'm telling the truth about the bombs, or maybe this isn't even a real detonator, but how would you know if the bombs are real or fake until it was too late? You and I both know you would never put other people's lives at risk for your own welfare, especially not that many. If you care about those people, you'll play along, and not just participate, but play to win. I want to see your all out there, Bird Boy, anything less will result in hundreds, maybe even thousands of lives lost."

Utter hatred radiated from Robin, but he said nothing. The Joker then untied his ropes and as he did so said nonchalantly, "By the way children, none of you are allowed to kill Robin." This was met with many shouts of outrage, which he ignored. "You can't vote for him to be killed either, and you are not allowed to unmask him. In the challenges you can do whatever you want to him, as long as it doesn't kill him or severely hinder his ability to compete. Break those rules, and whatever you do to him will be returned to you tenfold."

"Then what's the point of having him here?" asked Nigel.

"Live long enough, and you'll find out," said Joker, smirking.

The Joker then directed Robin towards our team, to which he grudgingly complied, his hands curled up into tight fists. "Now that the teams have been formed, Edward, your team is the Freak Shows and Jess-Belle, your team is the Mad Dogs. Without further ado, onto the first challenge. Follow me, kiddies."

We followed him out of the mess hall and up a flight of stairs, with Harley following behind, no doubt wanting to stay with the love of her life as much as possible. At the top of the stairs, he stopped and turned to face us. "One more thing, you may explore any rooms that you wish, except that one." He pointed to a door directly behind him, which was painted white with a grinning skull and crossbones.

"What's in there?" asked Holly.

"A surprise," he answered cryptically.

He turned back around and didn't stop until he led us into a room that looked more like a cross between a costume store and a makeup room. There were several racks of costumes and enough material to keep a costume store overstocked for a year. There were also twenty mirrors with expensive-looking makeup kits and several women dressed as clowns who looked very excited to see us.

"For your first ever challenge, you'll be creating your new selves, a very important part of becoming a superhero or villain. Since you can't play this game properly in your Arkham uniforms, you'll pick out a new name and then find or make a costume that goes along with your alias. The ladies, I call them my Happy-Smilers, before you will serve to help you with your costume if need be, as I know probably none of you can sew or anything like that."

"I can sew," said Bree. "I used to make my own clothes."

"Good for you," said Joker sarcastically. "Anyway, once you're done you will present yourselves to a panel of three judges: me, of course, Harley, and the Boy Blunder. We'll be deciding who dies in this episode, but after that it will be up to you." He then turned to Harley and said, "Harley-girl, would you like to do Robin's makeup and costume? You can even help him pick a new name if he can't do it himself."

"I'd love to!" squealed Harley as she began pulling Robin away and into another room. To Robin's credit, he didn't try to fight her off or say anything disparaging to either of them.

"Can I ask a question?" asked someone from behind me.

"My dear boy, you just did," the Joker pointed out.

"Another one, then?"

"You just did, again."

"What if you already have an alias, but no costume?" the boy asked, giving up on getting permission.

"What's your name and alias?" asked the Joker.

"Jack Duncan, the Artist."

"Well then, Jackey-boy, you're already halfway there! Just make a costume that goes along with your name and you'll be good to go. Listen kids, I want you to be as creative and original as possible. No copy-cats. These costumes you see around you? You can use them, but if you do you have to alter them and make them your own. Remember, it's not about winning or losing, we're here to have fun! The games begin... now!"

The Joker left and we immediately began searching through the costumes to try to decide what we would wear and what we would call ourselves. I had absolutely no idea what my alias should be, much less what kind of costume to wear.

"I already know what I'm going to do," announced Jess-Belle. She pulled out a small white costume from the rack. She then took some black material and set to work.

"I'm not quite sure yet what I'll do," said Zelda. She then turned to Jack and said, "Hey Artist, you wanna make me look like the Mona Lisa? Then again, I'm sure you could make me much prettier than the Mona Lisa, considering your _artistic_ abilities."

"Careful Zel, I might just take you up on that," he said with a grim smile. "Your nose _is_ a little crooked.

"It's no wonder you don't have a girlfriend Jack, if you're so shallow you feel the need tell a girl about all her flaws in great detail and then offer to fix them," said Zelda with a grin.

"Robin is so dreamy," said Bree as she looked through the costumes. "You think he's seeing anyone?"

"I don't know, but you should totally ask him out," said Jess-Belle.

"You really think I should?"

"You'd be crazy not to," replied Jess-Belle.

Bree squealed in delight as one of the Joker's hired stylists started to move in on me. "Do you need any help? I'd be glad to help you design your new self."

"I think I'm good," I said as I noticed that the same thing was happening to Zelda.

"You know, with a face like yours, you should go with a princess theme. I know!" she said excitedly. "With your blonde hair, you could be Cinderella, or Rapunzel!"

"Um... the Joker said no copycats," I said, trying to get away from princesses. I would sooner go naked than dressed as a princess.

"Oh yeah, I forgot," said the woman, clearly disappointed. "But you could still come up with your own princess thing!"

"Yeah Rose, you should totally go for the princess look, with a costume like that you'd strike fear into the hearts of all of Gotham," said Johnny with a laugh.

"I am not being a princess," I said adamantly.

"Neither am I," said Zelda, whose stylist must have suggested the same thing. "But I do know what I will be." She then began to rifle through the clothing materials until she came up with what looked like a bedsheet.

"You're going to be a ghost? I'm sure the Joker would love that," said Scarlet sardonically.

"Shut up Fatty," retorted Zelda, which earned her a scowl from the incredibly tiny Scarlet. "And no, I am not going to be a ghost. By the way, are those some new scars I see? Although, it is kind of hard to tell since you have so many."

"Zelda, cutting is a serious problem, you shouldn't make fun," Gwen scolded as she selected a black costume that seemed to shimmer in the light.

"Scarlet doesn't cut, she carves," responded Zelda.

From what I saw of her arms, I really couldn't argue with that. Nearly every inch of skin was covered in cuts and scars. Going from her arms, I suspected she had cuts in other places, too. I knew she had tried to kill herself many times back at the asylum, and she had refused to eat anything at breakfast, and so I wondered why she had been chosen to come here, or why she had accepted. Actually, I wondered why most of the people here had been chosen, and why they had accepted the invitation.

Scarlet stood and walked away with the costume she was working on. The stylist who had been trying to help Zelda moved on to Violet, whom Zelda suggested be a mime. Violet acted as though she hadn't heard her, but didn't protest when the woman enthusiastically agreed and began to make her costume. It gave me an idea of how to get rid of my own stylist, who was now trying to talk me into being a fairy.

"I really appreciate your help and all, but I think Holly could use some help." It wasn't a total lie, Holly seemed at a loss as to what to do. She searched through the costumes as she nervously sang _I'm a Little Teapot._

"I know what you should do, Holly," said Elise as she pulled out two nearly identical costumes for her and her boyfriend, Drake. "You know that song you like so much, _Twinkle Twinkle Little Star?_ Why don't you be Little Star?"

A smile of delight spread across Holly's face. "I'll do that."

"That was my good deed for the decade," chuckled Elise as she and her boyfriend went away to change.

"Wait, Twinkle Twinkle is your favorite? I've never heard you sing it before." During my time at the asylum, I had heard Holly sing every child's nursery rhyme known to man, and even some that I had never heard before, which was why they were all perpetually stuck in my head now. But I had never heard her sing that particular one.

"She only sings that one on _special_ occasions, but don't worry, I'm sure you'll get to hear her sing it sooner or later," said Jess-Belle, who was now dressed in her costume. It covered her chest and arms but left her legs bare, and stitched on it were black spades. "I'm the Ace of Spades."

"I think Devil's Advocate would have been a more appropriate choice, but whatever floats your boat," said Johnny.

"The ace of spades is the death card, you know," she informed him.

"You should have taken a human-size cardboard box and used it to make yourself a real card," he retorted.

I still hadn't come up with anything, and I was beginning to worry that I would have to go princess after all. I searched through the costumes until I found one that seemed to speak to me. It reminded me of a dream I had once had as a child, and I suddenly knew what my name would be. I immediately began working on the costume to perfect it and make it my own.

Around me, the others chose their names and costumes, as well. Some chose names that would be easy to complete with a costume, and vice-versa, while others chose names or costumes that would be very difficult to complete. Still, they all made the most of it, and accepted help from the stylists when they needed help sewing or stitching something, which was a good thing because those women seemed like they would explode if we didn't let them help.

When I was about halfway through fixing my costume, Zelda twirled back in, and not dressed as a ghost. She had turned the sheet into a toga of sorts, but instead of white like you would expect it was now dyed blood red. In her hair she had pinned a wreath, and on her feet were sandals. She also wore a shimmery gold necklace and gold earrings. She looked pretty good, actually.

"What are you supposed to be, Medusa?" jeered a boy named Hunter who had chosen to call himself Orion. I was told he had been a drug addict, but had been one of the few who had had his brain addled by the drugs, and that's why he had been in the asylum.

"I am Eris, goddess of chaos," she said in a voice that suggested she thought she actually was a goddess.

I finished my costume soon after and then went to look for a few more things to complete it. I then tried it on to see if it fit and to make sure it looked okay before I paraded myself before the judges. The woman who had tried to help me earlier came over to see what I'd done, and she didn't seem very pleased, even though I liked the costume and was sort of proud of myself for having done such a good job, or for at least not screwing it up.

"I don't know dearie," she said, her tone implying I was a child who didn't know the difference between shirts and pants. "You have such a pretty face, I really think you should have gone with fairy princess."

"Even as a little girl I never wanted to be a princess, and I certainly don't want to be one now."

"Whatever you say, darling," she said exasperatedly.

Joker's voice suddenly sounded over the intercom. "Time's up, head over to the auditorium, and try not to get lost this time."

I had finished my costume just in time, which brought me immense relief. Some, however, were not so lucky. While everyone had more or less finished their costumes, they had wanted to put on a few finishing touches. I figured as long as you _had_ a costume and a name you were okay.

The Happy Smilers, whose names I never learned, decided to save us the trouble of searching for the auditorium and led us there themselves. The auditorium looked normal, I was surprised to see. We were led to a huge stage with a big red curtain. Before us was the Joker on the right, Harley on the left, and Robin in the middle. I had to do a double-take when I saw him and nearly laughed, and almost felt sorry for him. Harley had painted around his mask, and his face was now as white as the Joker's and his lips were bright red. On his cheeks were painted little red hearts and his hair had been dyed bright green. I could tell he was trying to keep his anger from showing, but really, a person could only take so much.

"Why didn't you tell us we had a time limit?" demanded Jack.

"Did I forget to mention that? Oh well, three hours should have been more than enough time, especially for you, Artsy. Now, I want all of you to go behind the curtain and wait for us to call your name. The three of us will take notes and deliberate over who we think the loser will be. Get off the stage!" he snapped when we didn't move. "I have a show to do, you know!"

We did as we were told, we moved behind the curtain as he called the first name.

"Holly Day, come on down!"

_To be continued in the next chapter…_


	6. Chapter 6

_**Author's Note: **__This chapter is a continuation of chapter five, and so if you haven't read chapter five yet I strongly advise you to read it first. But I guess you could read chapter six and forget five all together if you want, but I don't recommend it because it would confuse you and then you would be mad at me for writing in such a confusing way lol. Whichever you choose to do, I think you'll like what's to come._

**~Robin's POV~**

If you had asked me a day ago what I thought hell would be like, I would have said a very hot place with a little red man punishing you for all the bad things you had done in your life, or something along those lines. But now there was no doubting it, the Joker's Circus was the real hell. If I didn't know better I would have believed I had already died and this was my eternal punishment.

The last thing I remembered I was rescuing a woman being mugged. That seemingly innocent woman had turned out to be Harley Quinn in disguise, but before I could do anything I had been knocked out with her hammer, and had woken up here feeling pretty sore.

It was hard to decide what the worst part of all this was. Here I was, being forced against my will to play the Joker's stupid yet deadly game while wearing clown makeup. That was humiliating. (Harley had given me the name "Chuckles", and I knew they would both start calling me that on a regular basis). I would also have to help decide who would die in this challenge, and I couldn't think of a way out. There was the force-field to consider, but even if I could escape it would mean the deaths of innumerable amounts of people. I think the worst part of it had to be not knowing if the Joker was lying or not. If he was lying, I'd take him out right then and there and find a way to escape this awful place. But for now, I would have to play along and hope I could find a way out of this. I wondered why the Joker had given me protection. I had a lot of enemies here, and if allowed they would eat me for breakfast, which would undoubtedly be entertaining for the Joker to watch, so I wondered why he was protecting me. I guessed he wanted to draw out this torture as long as possible, and only when he had had his fun would he set the wolves on me. This whole situation reminded me of what the Joker had done to my predecessor Jason Todd. Although I had never had the chance to meet him, I still mourned him as though I had, and hated the Joker all the more because of it.

"Edward Gage," called out Harley. At least we had already gone through some of them. This challenge would be over soon, but another would follow in just a few days.

Edward came out, dressed in a black jacket with a hood and black pants. His face was painted to look like a skull, and whoever had done it had done a really good job, it was almost frightening.

"I am the Shadow of Death," he said.

The Joker scribbled something down and said, "Thanks, Shadow-boy. Next we'll have Violet Doe."

A girl with beautiful violet eyes came out on the stage dressed as a mime. She didn't speak, not even to tell us what her alias was.

"Ah yes, Silent Violet," said Joker. "I would have preferred something verbal, but given your costume choice your name is pretty obvious and so I'll allow it. Okay, now we'll have Nigel Oliver."

The boy stepped out, but the second we saw him the Joker sent him away. He had been wearing a goalie mask and overalls, a typical chainsaw murderer outfit. It made sense, since in reality he was a chainsaw killer I had assisted in bringing to justice.

"Drake Lovett," the Joker called out.

Out came a boy with a girl on his arm. They were both dressed as clown dolls.

"Hey, one at a time, girley," said Harley, who had also been taking many notes.

"But our costumes go together. We're Raggedy Anne and Andy," said the girl.

"I thought I said no copycats, but seeing as how your costumes are far better than the last one, I'll let it slide," sighed the Joker wearily, as though he were being forced to baby-sit.

"Gwen Tanner," Harley called out. This was beginning to feel like auditions for a talent show or something.

"I call myself Mirage," she said when she had entered the stage.

"Not bad," said Joker, only mildly impressed. "Scarlet Bishop."

Scarlet came out and said, "I am the Nightingale."

"Pretty name and costume," complimented Harley. "Finn Parker!"

Finn came out and said, "I couldn't come up with anything name-wise, but I did come up with a costume." The costume wasn't much, but I figured it would get him through. I worried though, what would Joker do to him if he couldn't come up with a name? End the challenge and kill him?

Another boy with sandy blonde hair peeked his head out through the curtain and said, "Gollum! His name is Gollum!"

Finn turned around angrily, but the boy had already disappeared.

"Yes, having read your file I think Gollum will fit quite nicely for you," said Joker.

Finn stalked off back toward the curtains and said, "I hate you guys," which was met with many snickers.

"Bree Sparrow!"

Bree came out and introduced herself as "Antebellum." She then jumped off the stage and threw herself at me.

"Hi, I'm Bree! I was thinking maybe we could go out sometime," she said eagerly.

I was startled by her actions and at first didn't know what to say, but I knew I had to draw the line. The Joker could keep me here and make me play his game, but he couldn't force me to date anyone, especially not a mental patient. "I'm sorry, but no." It wasn't very sensitive or eloquent, but it was the best I could come up with at the moment.

Her eyes suddenly grew angry and she gripped her fingers around my throat and tried to strangle me. To my surprise, the Joker pulled her off of me, laughing hysterically.

"Sorry Antebellum, but you know the rules," he said as she tried to escape his hold on her. She soon calmed down, and dejectedly went back behind the curtain. Could this day get any weirder?

"Johnny Dare."

The boy called Johnny came out dressed up like a jester and confirmed that that was also his name. "I'm the Jester."

"A boy after my own heart," chuckled the Joker. "Okay, now we'll have Sam Beckett."

"I'm Ash," said the boy after coming out on stage.

"Now we'll have Lee Carter," said Joker dismissively.

Lee came out and said, "I'm Scar."

"Bet it took ya a real long time to come up with that one," said Harley as she rolled her eyes. "Kira Whitlock, get out here!"

"I'm the Bandit."

"Yes you are," said Joker uncaringly. "Last but not least, we have Rosemary Quinn."

Rose came out then, dressed in a short, dark purple dress with a halter top. She wore black and purple striped leggings and black boots. Her blonde curls were put up in pigtails, and she had on a bit of dark eyeliner, but no other makeup. I realized with a jolt that she was the girl being admitted when Bruce and I had brought the Joker back to Arkham about a month ago. When he had insisted on speaking to her, I had thought he was doing it to mess with her head for no reason other than because he liked doing that to people, but could he have been evaluating her to see if he wanted her on his show? Had he talked to the others too, to decide who he believed was worthy of competing to become his apprentice? If only we had known, maybe we could have stopped this before it started.

"I am the Marionette," she said.

"Nice outfit. Fashionable, yet functional too. Good work. Now run along, we have to deliberate," said Joker.

She left the stage, and now came the part I had been dreading, deciding who would die tonight.

"I have my mind made up and even though my opinion is the only one that matters, I want your opinions too," said the Joker.

"I think we should go with Scarface. Could he have been any less creative?" said Harley.

"Chuckles, what say you?" asked Joker.

I could feel myself sweating. Risking my life was no problem, I'd do that any day of the week. But helping decide who would live and who would die? The very thought that someone might die tonight because of me made me feel sick. But I knew I had to say something, so I decided to go with someone who the Joker seemed to have liked. At least that way there'd be less chance of him siding with me.

"I think we should go with the Jester, or the Marionette."

The Joker gave me a look that clearly said he knew what I was up too, and for a terrifying moment I knew he'd choose one of those two just because I had suggested them, but he surprised me by choosing someone different.

"I'm afraid it will be none of those," he said. "Let's bring them out again and make the big reveal."

He sent Harley to round them up and bring them back onto the stage. I was relieved that whoever died wouldn't be dying because of me, but that didn't change the fact that someone would die tonight, and there was nothing I could do to stop it.

"I hope you all feel comfortable in your new names," began the Joker. "Some of you did quite well, better than I expected. Others however, not so much. But now the time has come for one of you to leave us for good. Harley, bring out the Wheel of Misfortune, would you?"

Harley rolled out a wheel similar to what you would see on a game show, except instead of chances to win different amounts of money I saw nearly every conceivable way to murder someone. Harley spun the wheel, and it landed on "gunshot".

"A bullet to the noggin? How boring," said Joker, sounding slightly disappointed. "Oh well, what the Wheel says goes. Now I shall announce today's loser. Nigel aka Chainsaw, come on down!"

Nigel growled in anger and ran at the Joker, but the Joker moved at the last second and tripped him, sending him face-first to the floor. He stood up to fight again, his nose now bleeding. He ran at him again.

"Uh uh uh, Chainsaw, you know the rules. You didn't have to come here, none of you did. I actually had a few people turn me down, and I'm not even going to kill them, at least not for refusing me. But now that you're here you have to play the game by the rules. Besides, what you did makes me sick," said Joker as he sidestepped and dodged Nigel's next attack, sounding disgusted and angry. The way he moved every time Nigel was about to grab him almost made it look like they were dancing. "A chainsaw killer, really? Only a billion people dress up as chainsaw killers for Halloween every year, even Scar was more original, which is saying something. I bet the only thought you put into your costume at all was which movie monster you would emulate, am I right? Of course I am. I specifically said be original and creative, and it's like you went out of your way to do the complete opposite. You deserve far worse than this, you know."

Harley whipped out a gun and shot him right between the eyes. He dropped dead right there, blood pooling around him.

"Dontcha wish you could do that to everyone with poor taste in fashion?" said Harley as she twirled the gun.

"Well, I think it's about time to sign off this episode," said Joker as he turned to the camera. "Tune in next time to see what I cook up for these kids next!"

xxxx

After the Joker ended the episode, we were served peanut butter sandwiches and then sent off to bed even though it wasn't nighttime, which was just as well since I had no wish to explore the Joker's House of Horrors. Just looking at all those eye-shockingly bright colors made me feel like my eyes were bleeding. Not to mention the cameras everywhere. The Joker had mentioned the whole thing had been done live, but that didn't mean he hadn't set up other cameras in case something "interesting" happened while we weren't on live.

I went to the boy's dorms, wondering where I would sleep. I would have to bunk with someone, but I wondered who would be willing to bunk with me. I wasn't exactly Mr. Popular here. There was only one bed open, underneath Edward, or the Shadow, as he was now called. I remembered him, Batman and I had captured him and brought him to justice a few weeks ago, or tried to anyway. He was working for a hitman as sort of an apprentice, but despite his youth he was just as good or better than his master, and also sane, or at least sane enough to not be put in Arkham. But he had pleaded guilty by reason of insanity to get out of going to prison, one thing had led to another, and he had been put in the asylum and ended up here. I didn't think he would be dumb enough to cross the Joker and try to kill me, but that didn't mean he would let me have the bottom bunk. I wasn't afraid of him by any means, but I already had too many things to deal with at the moment, and sleeping arrangements were the least of my problems. I was about to lie down on the floor when someone said my name.

"Hey Robin, you can bunk with me if you want," said the boy whom I recognized as Finn. "Edward, we can switch and you can bunk with Hunter."

"Sounds reasonable," said Edward with a shrug. He and Finn traded beds, but as he passed me Edward said, "Look twerp, I can't hurt you because of the Joker's stupid protection over you. But when he takes it away, and we all know he will eventually, I'll make you wish you'd never donned that mask and cape in the first place."

I had to admit, it was kind of funny when people like him tried to intimidate me, especially when I had bigger problems to worry about than some punk. "Get in line, Eddy."

He gave me a dangerous look, but didn't touch me. I got into bed, grateful for Finn's unexpected kindness. Despite my fatigue it took me a very long time to fall asleep. I vaguely wondered if anyone would ignore the Joker's rules and try to kill me, regardless of any punishment. I had plenty of enemies who would enjoy making me suffer and then ending me. In a way, that would be the best solution to my problem, but I couldn't give up. I had to stay strong, to prove that I was a worthy sidekick to Batman. He would tell me I didn't need to prove myself, but right now I did. I wouldn't let the Joker twist my mind or corrupt me. I would fight with everything in me, until either I was free of this place, or dead.


	7. Chapter 7

Three days passed, and those three days were very uneventful. I spent some time exploring the house, which seemed to have no end. The day after our first challenge the guys had discovered an old fashioned arcade and had spent most of their time down there, but I had discovered something even better: a library. I loved to read, to be able to escape and experience a world completely different than my own. My favorites were fiction, mostly fantasy, as I believed that I got enough reality in real life and didn't need to read about it in my books. Robin had been spending most of his time there too, though I suspected he came more for privacy and for a place to think rather than interest in reading.

I was in the library reading a book by Edgar Allen Poe when the Joker's voice boomed out over the intercoms, telling us to go outside for our second challenge. I left the library and made my way through the house and out the front door. Navigating the house was still difficult but gradually getting easier. Or at least I didn't get lost as much as I used to, which had to be worth something.

Once I was outside, it turned out that not everyone had had the luck I'd had finding their way out. Some henchmen, or as Joker called them, "Happy Smilers", had had to find lost competitors and lead them outside. I was beginning to wonder if each of the henches had a map of the place, because they never seemed to lose their way.

Once we were all there, a woman wearing a pink and purple wig and the same clown makeup all the female henches wore, appeared in a big blue van.

"Hi, I'm Carly, and I'll be driving you to your challenge!" she said, her tone overly-cheery. "Come along now, one does not keep the Joker waiting!"

As we got in, Johnny muttered, "Where does he get these people? Seriously, a lot of these girls look like their faces have been surgically altered to never stop smiling. They're worse than Joker!"

A cameraman had also come for the ride and was recording everything we said and did, which wouldn't be easy to get used to. As I looked up at the sky, which was sunny and bright blue and seemed out of place here in dark Arkham City, I wondered where the challenge was being held. The Joker had told us we were free to leave the building if we wanted, just so long as we got back whenever he told us to in a timely manner. But I also wondered what the challenge was, of course. I doubted it would be another fashion show, but beyond that I really had no clue as to what the Joker had cooked up for us.

Carly drove us to the edge of Arkham City, which took a couple hours. Once we got out of the van, Carly began distributing weapons, or to be more specific, knives.

"Why are you giving us knives? Wouldn't guns be more effective?" asked Zelda.

"Ask the boss, I just do what he tells me," she said, still smiling. I wondered if they were paid extra to smile constantly, or if they just did it because they wanted to. Either way, the Joker's name for them certainly fit.

After she had finished handing out the knives, she ushered us into a hospital. Inside, in the waiting room, I heard Joker and Harley arguing about something in another room.

"It's fine Harley, leave it alone."

"I just want to adjust it a little bit-"

"I am capable of dressing myself and tying my own bowtie!"

I heard what sounded like a slap, and then they both came to meet us in the waiting room, Harley rubbing her cheek.

"Hello children," greeted the Joker. "Ready for your challenge?"

"Why'd you give us knives?" asked Zelda. "I could do a lot more damage with a gun."

"Guns are too quick, m'dear. You aim and pull the trigger and it's all over. But with a knife, you actually get to have some fun. Besides, you should be glad I gave you any weapons at all, as you'll need them in today's challenge. There will be challenges in the future where they'd come in handy but won't be allowed, so count your blessings, Eris."

"What's the challenge?" asked Bree.

"Today, you must do something you all wanted to do for a long time, escape an asylum. In your criminal careers you'll likely be arrested every now and again and you'll have to devise a plan of escape, and this challenge is to help you become better at escaping and staying hidden. But since we don't have an asylum here, we're improvising with this hospital. You will each be placed in a room to start, and then you must try to escape from the hospital itself. But be warned, this place is crawling with guards that will try to keep you from leaving. They are all in contact with each other, and if you are touched three times, they will then be allowed to kill you. If you escape the hospital, you must reach homebase, which is of course the house we're staying in. There will also be people hunting you out there as well, and homebase is pretty far off, but don't worry. There are markers that will guide you back, and you can borrow any cars that you find, provided of course you know how to hotwire them. You may kill the guards if you wish, but keep in mind that taking the time to do so will give the other guards a chance to get you. It's about ten in the morning now, I expect you all to be back by midday. If you don't have a watch, feel free to ask the guys chasing you what time it is. Now, if you'll all follow me..."

The Joker led us up the elevator to the top floor. I could tell they had tried to clean up this place, but it still had that feel of abandonment. They had been making progress in getting this building suitable for treatment, but attempts had only been half-hearted and they still had a ways to go. I wondered what the Joker had done with the people who had tried to renovate this place, and if we were the only ones left in Arkham City.

"Hey Robin, remember when you and Batman caught me in a hospital that one time," said Zelda as Joker began putting people in different rooms. "It was my third escape from Arkham, and you and Bats decided I was worthy enough for you to capture."

He turned around to face her and, with a ghost of a smile playing at his lips, said, "How could I forget? You called me a name I won't repeat and then tried to stab me with a used hypodermic needle."

"Good times," she replied, as though it were one of her favorite memories. Bree shot her a dirty look, as though Zelda had been flirting with Robin, which she probably had been.

I was given a room to stay in, and I sat down on the naked bed. It was only a few minutes later that a siren blared, which I took to be the signal. I leapt into action, my knife at the ready. It reminded me of when I had killed those people before with the knife my attacker had threatened me with. I peeked out the door and saw a man in a police officer's uniform and wearing a clown mask. I pulled back in just before he could see me. This was going to be harder than I thought. Just to be sure, I checked the window to see how high up we were, and if it would be possible for me to climb down. We were seven stories up, and there was nothing I could use to climb down.

I went back to the door and peeked out farther this time. Thankfully, the hallways only had that one guard, so I could probably escape without detection. There were two stairways to choose from, so getting out wouldn't be too difficult. Before I left my room, I saw Robin dart out of his. He made it without making a peep, which encouraged me a bit. I waited until the guy was facing away from the stairs opposite the ones Robin had taken, and then made a silent run for it. On the stairs, however, there was a guard waiting for me. He ran at me, and I quickly slashed his leg with my knife before he could touch me. The man howled in pain, and remembering the Joker's warning, left him there alive. Just behind me, Finn appeared but didn't say a word to me as we continued on down the stairs. The Joker had many henchmen guarding the stairs, but they were spread out and alone so we took them out quite easily. After all, there was only so much they could do while they couldn't kill us. By the time we reached the bottom floor, we had both been touched once. As we were about to leave the building, we saw Hunter going through a medicine cabinet.

"Come to Papa," he said greedily as he smashed the glass case and looked through the drugs, searching for the one that would give him the high he truly believed he needed. In his joy at having discovered drugs, he didn't seem to notice the guard swiftly approaching him.

"Hunter, look out!" Finn whispered loudly. If Hunter heard him, he didn't show it. Even though we'd probably regret it later, we stayed and hid to see what would happen. Three times the guard tried to capture Hunter with his bare hands, and three times he fought him off and went back to the meds, as though the guard was nothing more than an irksome fly. After three touches, the guard was allowed to kill him, and he didn't hesitate. He pulled out a gun and fired it into his head, which got Finn and me moving. We split up once we were free and I immediately had to hide from a passing guard. Dang, I knew Hunter hadn't been right in the head, but it was like he had been asking that guy to kill him. At least now we wouldn't have to vote on who would die that night, we'd filled our death quota, for this challenge anyway.

It goes without saying that it's really hard to hide in a deserted city in the middle of the day, especially when you're wearing a brightly colored costume. I tried to stay out of sight as much as possible, but there were far more guards out here than there were in the hospital, and they weren't as spread out as before. As I passed by a convenience store, one of them noticed me and alerted the guy he was patrolling with. They ran at me, determined to capture me. What would they do with me if they did capture me? I'd be disqualified, of course. Anything beyond that I neither knew nor cared.

They came at me and I ran. I wanted to fight back, but all they needed was to get two more touches on me, and then they could just shoot me. I couldn't die like that, especially not in the second challenge. I couldn't let them have me, wouldn't let them have me, so I ran as fast as I could, doing my best to get away while trying to not alert any other guards to my presence. Luckily I was smaller and faster than them, so I escaped them quickly. I stopped and hid in an alley behind a horrible smelling dumpster to catch my breath. While I was crouched down, I caught sight of one of the markers the Joker had talked about. It was an arrow spray painted on the side of a building, and I knew I was going in the right direction. But before I could get going again, a guard appeared out of nowhere and grabbed me. I stabbed him in the chest and ran without checking to make sure he was dead. That was two touches, one more and I was fair game.

I began moving slowly to try to keep from being detected. I figured that even though we had a deadline, it was better to get there late than never. I saw the others as I walked, running from clown police or just trying to stay hidden. Even though we were technically on teams, the Joker didn't seem to care if we worked together or not.

A few hours passed and the sun only grew hotter, and I was beginning to grow tired. There was no way I was going to quit, but my fatigue would make it more difficult to fight off the guards.

Suddenly, a car appeared right in front of me from out of nowhere. The driver threw open the side door and said, "Need a lift?" Edward.

I got in without asking questions. So, Eddy knew how to hotwire cars. That was definitely a skill I needed to learn.

"Why'd you pick me up?" I asked as he ran over a guard.

"Damsel in distress, why wouldn't I?" he asked with a taunting grin.

"I am not a damsel in distress. I was handling myself just fine out there."

"How many touches do you have left?" he asked.

"One," I admitted sheepishly.

"You should thank me, of all the people I could have picked up I chose you."

"Thanks, but I didn't need it."

He continued to drive, and I could tell we were getting close to homebase. Just as I was about to say as much, another car slammed into us from the side. Neither of us were hurt, but I was a bit dazed, and he appeared to be the same. Regardless, we both got out of the car to face our attackers, which turned out to be eight guards crammed into a five-seat car. Under different circumstances I would have made a joke about that, but there was no time. I stabbed one and dodged another. Even though I had never been trained with a knife, I found I was pretty good as I drove the blade through the eye of one of the clowns as Edward stabbed one in the side. We had nearly taken them all out when one unexpectedly wrapped his arms around me, and the remaining two both drew their guns and pointed them at me. Edward grabbed them both and slammed their heads together before they could shoot as I sunk my knife into the throat of the guy who had grabbed me.

"Run!" he yelled at me, but I was already running. I could see the Joker's house now, and I didn't even try to hide myself anymore. I passed by a few guards, who all pulled out guns and fired at me, but fortunately they all seemed to have poor aim and I was able to reach the door just as a bullet whizzed by my ear. I threw open the door and collapsed on the blue couch as I attempted to catch my breath. Harley suddenly appeared in the doorway, a smile on her face.

"Congratulations Marionette, you're the fourth one back!" she said as she motioned for me to follow her.

"I am?"

"Yeah, so far you, Mime, Jester, and Chuckles are the only ones who weren't dragged in by guards. Seriously, someone needs to teach those kids a lesson or two in stealth, or at least how to use a knife properly. We already got twelve losers in here, they'd just better be glad we've already had two deaths today, otherwise the Dogs would be on the hotseat."

"Two deaths?" I asked her. I only knew about Hunter, I hadn't seen anyone else get shot.

"Orion and Mirage were the ones. Orion died for the drugs that screwed up his mind, and I think Mirage had a schizo-moment that ended up in her getting killed. Darn shame, I was hoping we'd get to use the Wheel of Misfortune again tonight, but I guess I'll just have to wait 'till next time."

So Hunter and Gwen were both dead. I wondered if the double-header would mess up Joker's plans for future episodes and challenges, but knowing him he wouldn't let something like this stand in his way, and he'd adapt accordingly. Harley led me to a room that looked like a courtroom. Seriously, what didn't this place have? Drake and Elise had said something about a pool and Jacuzzi, and I hoped they were right.

Harley led me to the right side of the room, and all the other contestants were on the left. Judging by the looks on their faces, I assumed they were the losers Harley had mentioned. It didn't take too long for the rest of the players to get here, they had evaded the guards and made it back safely.

The Joker appeared then and sat in the judge's seat and said, "Well, today was a day for failure, wasn't it? So many of you failed the challenge, some of you never even made it out of the hospital. But that's okay, your uncle Joker understands, it's why you're all here. You all came here to learn, why, if you already knew all you needed to know about being a criminal, you'd be teaching me, and not the other way around. I expect to see better next time, but at least you hopefully learned something about stealth and evasion. Not to mention, but you now have an idea of what to expect in the challenges to come. That's all kiddies, be prepared for next time!"

**~Outside Arkham City~**

**Three Days Ago**

Batman was driving around the city in the Batmobile, searching desperately for Robin. It had been nearly a week since he had gone missing and so far there had been almost no leads. No one knew where he was, or who might have taken him. Nightwing had come to assist in the search, and Oracle was doing everything she could from her wheelchair.

"Bruce," said Oracle in his ear. "I really think you should come back. It's been days since you last slept, you need your rest. You're not as young as you used to be, you shouldn't be pushing yourself like this."

"You know I can't do that. For all I know Tim is being tortured for information somewhere, he could even be dead, Barbara." It pained him greatly to have to say it, but it was a possibility. "I'll rest when he's safe and sound at home."

"With all due respect, you won't be of much help to him if you can't walk in a straight line without tipping over from exhaustion."

He wasn't that bad, but he knew what she was saying was right. "I'll be back so-"

"Wait a minute Bruce," said Oracle suddenly. That surprised him. Barbara usually didn't interrupt him, unless it was about something important.

"What is it Barbara? Is it Robin?" he asked, his hopes rising despite himself.

"Oh my God," she said. That didn't sound good. "You need to see this, right now."

Without another word, Bruce raced home as fast as he could. When he got back to the Batcave, he saw what Oracle had been talking about on the batcomputer, and he understood why she had sounded so urgent.

"Good evening folks! Joker here! Now I know you're all heartbroken that your favorite programs had to be preempted, but I have something far better for you: Me! And as a side bonus, you get to watch a handful of criminally insane children compete in a fight to the death to win a prize beyond your wildest imagination. You see, the time has come for me to choose a protégé, someone to follow in my footsteps and pick up my mantle after I'm gone. Not that I plan on going anywhere anytime soon," he added with a wink. "For the next few weeks I'll be hosting my own little game show, where twenty carefully selected teenagers will compete for the ultimate prize: a place at my side, where they can gain knowledge and be immortalized with me. I know you'll all want to get the best view of all the chaos, so I have hundreds of cameras set up all over Arkham City. I hope you're taking notes, 'cause I'll be giving away super-criminal secrets and tips you won't find anywhere else! Who will win? Who will lose, and who will die? Come along with me for the ride of your lives. _Survivor_ ain't got nothin' on us!"

Bruce skipped through most of it, shocked when he realized the madman was back in Arkham City, but nothing could have prepared him for what he saw next: Robin. Robin was being used by the Joker in his sadistic game. He saw that the Joker had given him protection, but that was only good in the short-term. He immediately took off again for Arkham City, forgetting all about his fatigue. He was about to enter Arkham City when he suddenly hit something he hadn't seen, causing the front of the Batmobile to be destroyed and stopping him altogether. He jumped out to try to figure out what had caused such a huge impact, but almost didn't see it. If he squinted, he could see what looked like a shimmery wall, blocking him from entering.

"That shield's impenetrable," said Commissioner Gordon, suddenly appearing by his side. Jim should have retired by now, but hadn't because he still felt the duty to protect Gotham, just as Bruce did. He knew that they would both have to quit soon due to their slowly growing physical limitations, but for now they had serious work to do. "We've tried everything, but nothing works. I don't know how the Joker is doing this, but the shield even blocks off the sewer, it's like a giant bubble."

Batman felt his anger rising. Normally the Joker wouldn't resort to a shield like this to protect himself, but this time it was clear he wanted to play his game with no interference from the outside world. Even when the Joker didn't care if he got caught, capturing him was usually difficult, but when he didn't want to be caught, capturing him was nearly impossible. The Joker would let the shield down eventually he knew, but by then Robin could very likely be dead.

"Some of the families of those kids are begging us to get in and are even offering to pay us, even though we've tried to tell them we can't. But not all. Most of those kids don't have anyone trying to bring them back. I understand that some of them don't have any family, but some have people that just don't care. It's tragic really, that those kids would turn to such a man," said Jim as he shook his head sadly.

Bruce nodded. It was tragic, and he did feel sorry for those kids, but they had chosen this, Robin hadn't. Even though he knew it wasn't his fault, Bruce still felt responsible for Robin's predicament. He should have been there for him, he should have saved him, just like he should have saved Jason. This time, he would save Robin. He wouldn't let him down, he would rescue Tim and bring him home safely. He just didn't know how yet.


	8. Chapter 8

**~Robin's POV~**

"Can't you just wash the makeup off?"

"Harley said that if I did she would tattoo it onto my face."

"Oh. Tough break, man."

I was having lunch with Finn. There were two tables in here, one for each team, but that didn't stop certain people from going to the other team's table, namely Elise and Drake. "Lunch" consisted of something that appeared to be cold, watery oatmeal. I wondered if Harley was really that bad at cooking, or if the cook was doing it on purpose out of spite. Maybe it was both, but in any case I knew that if Alfred knew about this he'd be utterly appalled. The thought brought a small smile to my lips.

It had been a day since the escape the asylum challenge. I had been able to complete the challenge without killing any of the guards, which I considered a blessing. But that challenge was like an omen of what was to come, and I worried that I would be forced to kill. If the Joker put me in that position, what would I do? I wished Bruce was here, he would know what to do. Hell, he probably would have escaped by now, which made me feel even worse.

As I was talking to Finn, I couldn't help but wonder why he had been put in the asylum, or why the Joker had chosen him. From what I could see, he seemed like any other guy, and not really the murdering type, although I knew he would if he had to. I knew that the Joker had chosen each contestant carefully and not without reason, but some I couldn't understand why. Like Holly, for instance. She wasn't normal by any definition of the word, but she would make a terrible sidekick, assuming she lived long enough.

"Finn, I know it's kind of a personal question, but I have to ask. Why'd you agree to join the Joker's Circus?" I asked him.

Finn stirred his oatmeal without looking up and said, "Let's just say I wasn't myself at the time."

Before I could ask him to elaborate, Zelda had been getting her oatmeal and picked up a jar of different colored beans off the counter and spilled them all over the floor. Jack, who had been waiting in line behind her, growled in frustration and immediately dropped to his knees and began picking them up one by one.

"You want some help there, Jack?" asked Finn.

"No, you'll only do it wrong. Screw you, Zelda."

Zelda only laughed and took her bowl to our table and began eating while Jack organized the beans by color.

"So Jack has OCD," I said, low enough that he wouldn't hear me.

"Yeah, it's why he spends every morning folding and refolding the blanket on his bed, among other things," replied Finn quietly.

"Is that why he was put in Arkham?"

"Yes and no. He was put in there, not because he's a neat-freak, but because of his other strange habits. Two years ago he got a job at a funeral home, but was fired because he started cutting body parts off of corpses, their blemishes and imperfections, anything he believed flawed the person's appearance. It didn't take very long for people to catch on to what he was doing and he was fired, and after that he gave it up for a while. But seeing all the "imperfect" people around him, he started killing people, cutting off their imperfections, and then setting them up somewhere, like sitting them on a park bench or something as though they were still alive. They don't call him the Artist for nothing."

"I'm surprised I've never heard of him before," I said.

"There wasn't much need for Batman's assistance, he wasn't very hard to catch."

Suddenly, the Joker's voice came out over the intercom. "Challenge time, my little delinquents! You'll need to go outside again for this one."

"I thought he said every three days," I said, not bothering to hide my irritation.

"I said we'd have a challenge every three days or whenever I feel like having them. Remember whose show you're on Chuckles, I make the rules around here. You want to make the rules, get your own show."

I sighed and did as he said, pummeling him in my head as I did. Finn and I ended up having to drag Jack away from the beans as he yelled curses at us.

"That's gratitude for you," muttered Finn.

**~Rose's POV~**

The Joker met us outside for the next challenge. Harley was whispering something in his ear, making him smile in amusement. He roughly shoved her away once we were all outside and said, "Let's get right down to business, shall we?" he said, addressing the camera filming us. "Today's challenge is a scavenger hunt of sorts, and you'll need to play as a team. You'll be given a list of the rogues, or at least the ones whose names I care to remember. For each rogue, you'll need to find something that reminds you of them, for instance, Poison Ivy you would associate with plants, and Mad Hatter you might associate with fairy tales and helpless children. There are no guards, so you won't be allowed to use your knives for this one. Take them out and drop them, I want a nice, clean game." Reluctantly, we all dropped our knives at his feet, though Robin seemed more than happy to be rid of his. We did, he gave each team a list. "You have until sunset, now go!" My team and I ran a short distance to get away from the Dogs, and then stopped to examine the list.

"The first name on the list is Two-Face," said Finn, who was holding the list. "Maybe we could get a coin from somewhere, a bank maybe?"

"We don't need a bank," said Lee. He went over to an old vending machine and began kicking and punching it. He then pushed it over and tried to force it open, but we all had to help him. Eventually we forced it open and took a quarter from inside.

"This should work," said Edward as he held it up. "What's next?"

"Scarecrow," said Elise as she glanced at the list in Finn's hand. "I'm not so sure about this one. I can think of a few things that might work, but I don't know if we can find them here. If only we had Drake on our team, he was great at this kind of thing. Why didn't you pick him Edward?"

"I had more important people to pick first. Keeping your love life alive isn't exactly my top priority."

"Why don't we take a walk around, we can think about Scarecrow and get the other stuff we need to," suggested Bree.

"I think that's our best option," said Robin.

"While I hesitate to agree with the Boy Blunder on anything, we don't have many options," conceded Edward.

We walked around the city, and I took the opportunity to take a good look at the city for the first time. It didn't look too much different than Gotham city, except for the obvious lack of people and activity. The place really was a ghost town.

"What do you think the Joker did with all the people who lived here?" I asked no one in particular.

"Where do you think all his henchmen and hench-ladies are coming from?" replied Robin darkly.

"Good point."

"Is Mr. Zsasz on the list? If he is, the Dogs will have the advantage 'cause they can just use Scarlet to represent him," said Zelda.

"That was tasteless," said Bree. "Why are you always so hard on her?"

"We went to high school together, she stole my boyfriend. I killed him, of course."

"But why not Scarlet?" asked Lee.

"And give her what she wants? Making her miserable life even more miserable is much more effective."

"Mr. Freeze is on the list," said Elise. "We just passed a restaurant, maybe on our way back we could see if they have any ice."

"Hold on a minute. There's something I need to get for the scavenger hunt," I said, pointing to a little abandoned store.

"What is it?" demanded Lee.

"You'll see, I'll be right back."

"Rose, meet us up near that hat shop when you're done, and be quick about it. We'll be taking care of the Mad Hatter," said Edward.

I nodded and dashed toward the shop. It took me a while to find what I needed, and despite it not being on the list, I was certain we would need it to win. Just as I was about to head for the hat shop, the Dogs suddenly appeared in my path.

"Hello Rose, have you lost your fellow Freaks?" asked Jess-Belle. She was carrying a Harlequin novel, and her teammates also carried several various items, which meant we were behind. Not by much, but that didn't matter, only the fact that they were winning and we were losing mattered.

"I was just about to catch up with them, actually," I informed her curtly. "It looks like you guys are off to a good start."

"Yes, we're almost halfway there, and we have no time to sit by and chat, so good luck hunting." And with that, they were off and so was I. I quickly rejoined my team outside the hat shop. Bree was holding the biggest and tackiest hat I had ever seen.

"What'd you get?" asked Lee.

"It's not important now, but what is important is getting the rest of the stuff on that list. The Dogs are ahead of us, we need to move faster," I told them hurriedly.

"Next is Hush," said Finn.

"The hospital. We can get bandages there, which would be perfect for him," I said as I took off for the hospital, not waiting for the rest of my team.

It took us an hour to find the hospital. It was weird going back in after fighting to get out yesterday. We ran inside and soon found bandages, and as we were about to leave, Violet poked my arm to get my attention.

"What is it Violet?" I asked her as she pointed toward the very same drug cabinet that had cost Hunter his life just the day before. She then took the list from Finn and pointed at one of the names. Bane.

"You have something of value to contribute Mime?" asked Edward. "Use your voice and help out or stay out of the way, okay?"

"Leave her alone," said Robin.

"Why should I? You haven't got a crush on the mute, have you?" challenged Edward.

"It's my duty to protect, and besides, she _is_ contributing to our team. Or are you too dense to tell?" Before Edward could respond, he continued, "For Bane, we could use one of those bottles of drugs. There's no Venom in those bottles of course, but from a certain point of view Bane is an addict, and I think any one of those bottles would work."

Violet seemed slightly pleased that someone had understood her. She went over to the broken cabinet and took a bottle.

"Not bad Mime," said Zelda. "Now let's go get the rest."

Hours later, we had found a toy penguin, a clock, a lizard, and a calendar. The sun was going to set soon, and there were still some villains that we just couldn't find items for, namely Scarecrow and Riddler.

"We'd better head back," said Bree. "The sun will be setting soon."

"We're almost there, we can't go back yet," said Edward. "Rose said the Dogs are ahead, and going back now could seal our doom."

"The Joker might not count any of what we have already if we're not back in time," said Robin. Bree, pleased that he had agreed with her, threw her arms around his waist. Robin blushed and looked like he wished he could be anywhere else, but didn't push her away. I wasn't sure if he let her hug him to keep from hurting her feelings or for self-preservation, maybe both.

"Let's stop by that restaurant and get some ice, and then head back," I said.

Edward looked like he wanted to argue but said nothing. We got the ice and then walked back to the Joker's mansion. It's a good thing we went back when we did, because the sun set just as we entered the house.

"It'd be nice if the Joker would actually tell us where to go and what to do after we finish challenges," grumbled Robin.

"Let's go back to the auditorium, it's as good a place as any to start," said Zelda.

Sure enough, everyone was in the auditorium. The Dogs were already there, looking smug. They sat on one side, and Harley, who was sitting on the edge of the stage filing her nails, pointed us to the other side. Just as we sat down the Joker strutted in and said, "Well kids, what have you brought me?"

We all laid down the items we had collected at his feet, careful not to mix them with the opposite team's. My heart sank when I saw how much more the Dogs had than we did, in fact, it appeared they had found something for every villain on the list. They had even succeeded in finding something for Scarecrow and Riddler; a scarecrow mask and a book of a thousand and one riddles. They had even found a stray kitten, for Catwoman. It was clear who the losers were, yet the Joker crouched down and inspected each object anyway. He started with the Dogs, and then moved on to ours. Once he had finished his inspection, he stood back up and announced, "And the winners are… the Freaks!"

The Dogs shouted in outrage, while we Freaks couldn't believe what we'd just heard.

"We collected an item for each and every supervillain on the list, they barely managed to get more than half!" shouted Jess-Belle. "I realize you can change the rules if you want, but this is completely unfair!"

"Not really," said Joker calmly, as though they were having a friendly discussion over tea. "Neither team would have won, if not for this." He held up a pack of playing cards for us to see. "You see, when I gave you your lists, I left off one name and expected you to remember it yourselves, but you Dogs didn't. You forgot _me_, which is why the Freak Shows won. Which of you found the cards?" he asked us.

"I did," I said as I slowly raised my hand. "I saw a joke shop, and it reminded me that you would have included yourself, even if you didn't put your name on the list."

"Such an intelligent girl," he said with a brilliant smile. "I'm glad at least one of you knows how to use your noodle."

"How were we supposed to know you'd include yourself?" demanded Sam.

"It should have been obvious," said Joker simply. "When I said I had made a list of the rogues, naturally I would be at the top, I shouldn't have to tell you that," he said with a laugh. "But now, I'm afraid it's time for you to choose who you want to die."

A couple henchmen passed out pens and paper, and after they wrote down the name of the person they had chosen, Harley began passing around a top hat for them to put their votes in. She then delivered the hat to the Joker, who quickly counted the votes.

"And tonight's loser is…" the Joker paused to let the tension build, as all hosts do. "The Bandit!"

"No!" cried Kira as the two henchmen dragged her over to the Joker. She turned back and screamed at her teammates, "How could you? Why would you do this to me?"

"You tried to steal some of our items earlier, remember?" said Jess-Belle with her arms crossed. "Even though we lost anyway, you still hurt our chances of winning by trying to pickpocket us every five minutes."

"Y'all know I can't help it! Please, y'all can't do this to me!" she cried as Harley rolled out the Wheel of Misfortune. "I changed my mind! Please, let me go home, I don't want to die!"

"You should have thought of that before you signed on. The rules must be followed, and you've been chosen. Would you like to spin the Wheel, Bandit?" said Joker, gesturing to the wheel.

"That's worse than askin' me to dig my own grave," protested Kira as tears ran down her face.

"No it's not, spinning this wheel is a whole lot easier and less time-consuming than digging a six-foot hole in the ground," said Harley, as though she were trying to console the girl.

"Please don't make me," she whimpered.

"All right then, ya sore loser" sighed Joker exasperatedly. "Harley?"

Harley didn't hesitate to spin the Wheel, which landed on electrocution. The Joker grabbed her by the hand and shook her hand, and Kira screamed as the electricity from his joy-buzzer fried her body from the inside out. She collapsed and the two henchmen dragged her body away.

"Kids today, they think they're invincible. When they suddenly realize they're not going to live forever, why, the look on their faces is so adorably hilarious! So far we haven't had really exciting or interesting deaths," said Joker as he pulled the option of electrocution off the wheel, and I noticed gunshot was no longer there either. He must not want to repeat the same murder method twice, at least not where the Wheel was concerned. "But we have plenty more chances to make it happen. Goodbye Gothamites, say goodbye kids!"

We all said goodbye, and the Joker signed off the episode.

**~Robin's POV~**

That night, unable to sleep after watching that poor girl die, I went into the kitchen to fix myself a snack, even though I wasn't hungry.

I knew there was nothing I could have done for that girl, but that didn't ease my guilt in the slightest. I kept feeling like there was something I hadn't thought of, a loophole I had overlooked that could get me out of here and end the Joker's twisted game.

As I was about to take a bite of the sandwich I had made, I heard someone behind me. I turned but saw no one, but before I could turn back around, someone grabbed me and held a knife to my throat.

"Prepare to die, Birdboy," my attacker said, and although the voice sounded different, deeper and raspier, I recognized it.

"Finn, is that you?" I asked, surprised. I turned to face him, and saw in his eyes a hatred and evil that didn't belong there.

"I'm going to finish you once and for all," he said as he swiped at me with his knife. The Joker had given us our knives back after the challenge, and I was almost tempted to use mine. Almost.

"Finn, remember what the Joker said, if you kill me he'll punish you. I have no idea how, but he will," I said as I dodged the knife he kept swinging at me, bewildered by his sudden change in behavior. I thought we were friends, but maybe I was wrong.

"I don't care what the Joker says, he can't hurt me," the voice growled. I saw an opening and grabbed his arm and pinned it behind his back. I had to wrestle the knife away from him, which only seemed to make him angrier.

"Finn stop this, you can't win," I said as he tried to wriggle free. I lost my grip on him for a second and he immediately picked up his knife. He then raised his arm and aimed the blade for my chest, so fast that I couldn't stop him or try to shield myself, but just as the blade was about to penetrate my heart, he froze, a dazed expression on his face. He shook his head and then took in his surroundings. "How did I get in here?" he murmured to himself, and then he noticed the knife, and me. He gasped and dropped the knife and said, "Robin, did I just try to kill you?"

"More or less," I said, a bit shaky from the attack. You expect this kind of thing from your enemies, but people you consider friends? That can really throw you off balance.

"I am so sorry Robin, it won't happen again," he said, his eyes pleading for forgiveness.

"What was that all about, Finn? Is there something you're not telling me?"

He nervously bit his lip and said, "I didn't want to tell you, but since I almost killed you tonight I guess you deserve the truth." He took a deep breath to calm himself and said, "I have multiple-personality disorder."

"You do?" The attack suddenly made sense, or more sense than it did a minute ago.

He nodded and continued. "Ray is the one who tried to kill you, he wants you dead more than anything else. He's also the reason I agreed to come here. When I was asked, Ray was in control at the time and he chose for me, and by the time I was myself again it was too late to go back."

"But why would he do that? If you die, he'll die with you."

Finn shook his head and said, "He believes that he can survive without me, and so he isn't afraid to put us in dangerous situations because he believes that if anything happens, like the Joker killing me for killing you, I'll die and he'll still be alive. I actually have another personality who's the exact opposite, an old woman who calls herself Aunt Lydia. She wants to take care of me and believes that if anything happens to me, she'll be able to die for me so that I can go on. In a lot of cases of Multiple Personality disorder, the other personalities tend to be rather childish in their thinking, and mine can't grasp the concept that if I die, we all die. I think I may have others, but those are the only two I know for certain exist."

"But why do they call you Gollum? No offense, but wouldn't Dr. Jekyll or Mr. Hide be more appropriate?"

"Yeah, but that's been done. They call me Gollum because in the Lord of the Rings, the character had sort of a split personality, with one side being good and the other bad. He would argue with himself sometimes, but ultimately was dominated by the bad side, kind of like me. Trust me, they've been calling me Gollum long before this game started."

"Is there anything I can do to help?" I asked, feeling sorry for him. And here I had believed all of them had come here of their own free will. Finn was forced to be here, just like me.

"Just promise you won't hold it against me if Ray tries to kill you again. If he does, do whatever you have to do to stop him, er, me. You know what I mean."

"I wish you didn't have to be here, but I'm glad to have you as a friend," I told him.

"So you don't think I'm a freak, and you think of me as a friend?" he asked incredulously.

"Sure, why wouldn't I? I know it wasn't your fault it happened, and I have no reason to hold this against you. Besides, I think we could both use a friend in here."

"My disorder has ruined so many things for me in my life, it's hard to believe that you still like me, even after I tried to kill you. Course, I guess you've dealt with crazier people than me, huh? You're probably used to putting up with whack-jobs in your line of work. But thanks Robin, I really hope you find a way to get out of this alive."

"I'll find a way to get us both out, I promise," I said as I put a hand on his shoulder. I didn't know if I could actually pull it off and save either of our lives, let alone both, but that didn't mean I wouldn't give it my all. I couldn't give up, not yet.


	9. Chapter 9

**~Rose's POV~**

Four days after the scavenger hunt challenge, I awoke and found myself lying on the concrete floor of a warehouse. I sat up, but when I did I realized I was handcuffed to Robin, who was still asleep. Surprisingly, on my lap were my pills. It was pretty weird that they would go out of their way to make sure I got my meds like this, but I decided not to question why whoever had brought me here and chained me to Robin had gone out of their way to bring me my pills and swallowed them. I then looked around the warehouse and saw that Robin and I weren't alone. All of the Freaks and Dogs were there too, all chained to someone, some were even chained to members of opposing teams.

Suddenly, a trumpet blast sounded over the intercom, waking everyone else up instantly and giving me a headache. The room became a huge mess of confusion as everyone tried to make sense of the situation they were in. People started yelling at the people they were chained to, as if blaming them for our current predicament.

"Buenos días!" said Joker over the intercom. "And welcome to your fourth challenge. You've probably already noticed that you're handcuffed to someone, unless you're still too sleepy to notice. Today's lesson will teach you about cooperation. In your criminal career, you'll sometimes find that you want something, but can't get it without forming uneasy alliances with someone you don't like. Trust me, I know what that's like. Forming alliances is hard enough, but then you actually have to _play nice_ until you've completed your mission. To help you all learn how to cooperate with other people effectively, I've infected each and every one of you with a poison that will kill you in ten hours. To counteract the toxin, you must find the two chemicals that, when mixed together, form the antidote. None of you have to die in this challenge, and if you all manage to save yourselves there will be no elimination ceremony. You are allowed to use your weapons, but you can't use them to free yourselves from your partner, no matter what. Anyone that escapes their partner will be disqualified and fed to the hyenas. The chemicals themselves aren't hard to find, they're being kept in marked buildings, but they'll be guarded by my henchmen and hench-ladies. In each building there is only enough antidote for one person, so you'll have to find two buildings to cure both of you. But be careful, there's only enough antidote for each one of you to be cured, and if you lose one of your chemicals, there's no second chance. Well, what are you waiting for? An invitation from the president? Get moving!"

We didn't need to be told twice. Robin and I stood up and got out of that place as fast as we could, and then we stopped to think.

"I think we need a strategy," he said.

"Like what, don't die?" I replied dryly.

"Basically, yeah. But we need to be careful. Not only are we going to have to fight, but we have to be careful not to lose the chemicals once we have them."

"That's not strategy, that's called playing by the rules of the game. Let's just get moving," I said as we began walking through the city, searching for the marked buildings.

"I apologize for wanting to think things through before running headfirst into my death," said Robin as Johnny and Violet passed by us. Johnny was talking animatedly about something while Violet, of course, remained silent.

"While it is extremely important to use your brain in this game, I don't think this challenge is about thinking, I think it's more about teaching us how to get along with our allies without killing them. You know, I'm starting to think that if the Joker hadn't given you protection, you would be long dead by now, and not because most of the people here want your head on a silver platter."

It was raining that day, and lightning flashed in the distance with claps of thunder close behind. The weather suited the dark, grim city much more than the sunny weather we had been getting lately. The rain felt good on my face, and I made no attempt to shield myself from the showers.

"I can take care of myself, it doesn't matter if the challenges require brains or brawn," said Robin. "Besides, it's not like I chose to come here, unlike some people. If I may ask, why did you choose to be a part of this messed up game? This game is the twisted love child of _The Hunger Games_ and _Charlie and the Chocolate Factory_, and I'm trapped in it."

"Hm, you know, that actually is a pretty good way to describe this game, I hadn't thought of it that way. And as for your question, I came because I didn't have many other options."

"You came because you thought they'd never let you out of the asylum? You don't seem that desperate, not like the others who came to escape the confines of the funny farm," Robin pointed out.

"No, it didn't matter if I ever got out or not. I'm different from everyone else, there are parts of myself that I want to understand, but can't. Besides, I've been rejected by pretty much everyone who's ever had a part in my life, it's not like anyone out there is losing any sleep over this."

"That's no reason to throw your life away. You've chosen to hate others, even those who've done you no harm," he said.

"I don't hate anyone. But I don't particularly like anyone either."

"Look, I know where you're coming from, but that's no reason to associate yourself with that madman."

"You're right, but the thing is, I've realized I don't want to fit in with the rest of the world. For most of my life I strived to fit in, to gain society's acceptance, only now have I seen that I'm better off without it. I want to be the Joker's sidekick, because I feel like it was what I was meant to do. I'm sure you can relate, being Batman's sidekick and all," I added.

"From a certain point of view, yes. But enough of that now, do you see that pet shop over there? It's marked with a spray-painted smiley-face."

We ran inside the building. The inside was empty, save for empty cages and rotten bags of pet food lying around here and there. We were lucky enough to find that there were two chemicals inside, but unfortunately they were guarded by two clowns, a man and a woman, just as the Joker had said. The clowns didn't move, they seemed to be waiting for us to strike first, and it was only then that I began to wonder if they had been given permission to kill, the Joker hadn't said. I drew my knife, but Robin didn't draw his.

"What are you doing? Take out your knife," I hissed.

"No, I will not kill those people," he hissed back.

"You don't have to kill them, you could stab them in their legs or something."

"I won't risk killing them."

"Then how the hell are you going help me take them down? You have no batarangs or any other weird bat devices to use, all you have are your hands."

"I can take them out with my hands," he said, as though this should have been obvious, which it kind of was.

"I know, but can you while we're stuck together? Somehow I doubt the Bat included that in your training sessions."

"We'll make this work, just work with me, all right?"

"Don't get in my way," I told him.

We sprang into action and tried to take out the guards, but it turns out that, surprisingly enough, it's really hard to attack when you're chained to someone. My slashes with the knife were awkward at best, and he wasn't doing much better. The henches easily fought us off, using low-powered tasers that stunned us for a few seconds, giving them enough time to kick us out of the pet shop, literally. At least it appeared they weren't allowed to kill us, that was something, but if we couldn't get the chemicals it wouldn't matter.

"That was the worst fighting I have ever seen," said Robin, sounding just like I felt, pathetic. "I guess Joker wasn't kidding when he said we'd have to work together, I really hate it when he's right."

"We kept getting in each other's way and gave them more than enough openings to take us down. I guess we do need a strategy if we're going to fight with three hands. How are we going to do this? I think a better name for this show would be the Joker's School of Insanity and Supervillainy."

"Or Supervillainy for Dummies," said Robin with a hint of a smile.

"Yeah, I guess that works too. Do you have any suggestions on how to fight together?"

"It'd be best if we could practice, but obviously we don't have time for that. We need to try to fight like we're one person, because if we don't we'll only get in each other's way and end up fighting each other. I know it sounds obvious, but if we don't do it there's no way we're going to get those chemicals."

"You ready to try again? I don't think they have permission to kill us, but we need to make sure we don't waste all our energy on these goons."

"We don't have much choice, do we?"

Reluctantly, we went back inside. The clowns were waiting for us, looking straight ahead and seemingly paying us no attention, but we knew better. A bit slower this time, we came closer and as we crossed the center of the room they came at us again. We struck back, but this time I made sure to try to coordinate my attacks with Robin's as he did with mine. It was very difficult trying to concentrate on my enemies and Robin at the same time. I had to fight the woman while Robin took on the man, and while it was clear they weren't going down without a fight, they seemed indifferent to the whole situation, like they couldn't care less whether we lived or died, they didn't even seem very interested in the fight. The clown woman tried to zap me with her taser again but I dodged and slashed at her with my knife, slicing open the skin just above her breast. Robin still insisted on taking his guy down with his bare hands, which would be harder to do chained. I realized that he wasn't even really fighting yet, just avoiding the man's attacks and moving with me until I took down my opponent. It was a smart strategy, I had to admit. I ducked as the woman tried to taze me again and sliced her throat open, and she fell to the floor. I then turned and began moving with Robin as he tried to take down his opponent. It was like a dance, a deadly, awkward dance. I thought about helping him but I didn't want to risk getting in his way. He certainly would have gotten in mine if he had tried to help me. He finally saw an opening and grabbed the guy and slammed his head against the wall, knocking him out cold.

I picked up the chemicals and examined them as best I could. The only labeling on the vials read, _mix me!_ There was a third empty vial, which I assumed we were supposed to mix the chemicals in. I mixed the chemicals, and the solution turned bright orange.

"One antidote down, would you like the honor of taking the first?" I asked as I offered it to him.

"You drink it," he said without hesitation.

"Are you trying to be a hero or something? Because if you are-"

"I'm not, but if one of us dies I'd rather it be me."

"So you are trying to be a hero. Aren't you afraid I'll drink it and cut your hand off and abandon you?"

"No, because the Joker said not to do that no matter what, and I'm pretty sure that includes partner death."

"Why don't we each drink half, and then we can each drink half of the other one," I suggested. I was not about to let him play knight in shining armor.

"That may not work," he warned.

"Only one way to find out." I raised the vial to my lips and drank half, then handed it to him. He downed the rest.

"I know you did that because you don't want to look weak, but aren't you afraid you might die because of what you did? What if we can't get the other half in time? You may have sacrificed your only chance at life back there," he said as we left the building. We then took off at a sprint, looking for the next building.

"I'd be okay with that. I want to win, but all things considered, there are worse ways to die."

"Are you not afraid of death?" he asked me as we slowed down. I spotted a few of the others scattered here and there but didn't acknowledge them.

"Well, I was afraid I would lose and die on the first day, because that would just be humiliating. Everyone dies Robin, some sooner than others. Like I said, I don't want to die, but it's just something you have to accept."

"But you're throwing your life away here. Whether you care or not about your own life, can't you see that this is wrong? There have already been four deaths that shouldn't have happened, and it's not going to end until all of us are dead but one. Can't you see where I'm coming from? None of you had to come here, but I was forced, and I can't imagine why anyone would choose this, it's like choosing a slow and painful demise over a quick and painless one. If you die, it won't be because the Joker took your life, it'll be because you trusted him enough to put your fate in his hands."

"I came here for a future, not the ideal future, but the best one possible for someone like me. A reject. I didn't leave because I was desperate to escape Arkham, and if I get to become the Joker's apprentice, that'll just be a side bonus. I'm not sure what exactly I want from this life yet, but we all have to start somewhere."

"Another thing I can't understand is how unfeeling you all must be to be doing this. Kira died a few days ago and no one cares. None of you stepped up to try to save her, or anyone else for that matter. I know there might be some you don't want to save, but Kira was your friend, or at least she seemed to be."

"It's just a game Robin, and people are going to die. It's all part of the game, you win a little, you lose and die. I guess it would reflect badly on your status as a hero if you were actually enjoying this, though."

"You have no idea how much it frustrates me that all of you could be safe and sound back home in Gotham, but you chose to go up against impossible odds, and in the end what will you have to show for it? A horrific, untimely demise, and your picture in the obituaries. Ask yourself, is this really worth it?"

I took a moment to answer him. "Yes. I don't know why, but I feel like this is what I was meant to do. I've never believed in destiny, but this whole thing feels like it. I understand why you feel the way you do and I don't blame you for it. You and me, we're at opposite ends of the spectrum, yet we're alike in at least one way. Something must have happened to you, something terrible, that made you what you are today: a boy in a mask fighting to save a dying city. I don't know what happened to you to make you this way, but I don't think it was too different from what's driving me to become this. From infancy to my sixteenth birthday I lived in an orphanage, and never once was I adopted, partly because the nuns wouldn't let anyone from outside come near me. I don't know why the world turned its back on me, but the way I see it, after everything that's happened, the best thing for me to do is to accept this fate and turn my back on the world. Call it a woman's intuition, but I think we're very much the same, and the thing that separates us is our choices in life."

"I wouldn't say we're that similar, but you're right about the choices part."

I looked up at the sky and was startled to realize that several hours had passed. I alerted Robin, and we stopped talking and focused on finding the other antidote. Most of the marked buildings had been hit already, and we were quickly running out of time. Where had the time gone? It felt like only a few minutes had passed. As we continued to search, we began to feel the effects of the poison, though our feelings of weakness, dizziness and nausea were nothing compared to what they would have been if we hadn't taken the first antidote, I was sure.

Just when I was beginning to give up on finding the last antidote, we opened the door to a building that should have been condemned that had once housed two separate businesses, and both had been marked. The henchmen must have decided to be lazy with this one. When we went inside, low and behold there was our antidote just waiting to be made. We took on the clowns with me killing mine and Robin merely incapacitating his, though with more difficulty than before as we were steadily growing weaker from the poison. Robin mixed the formula this time and we both again drank half. The feelings of dizziness didn't go away immediately, and actually seemed to intensify. We sat down against the wall to wait out the vertigo.

"Let's never work together again," I said as fatigue washed over me. I felt like I had just ridden a roller coaster a hundred times and had to make a concerted effort to not toss my cookies.

"Agreed," he said as he pinched the bridge of his nose and took a deep breath.

I studied him for a moment, and though he tried to hide it, I could tell watching me kill was bothering him. I almost felt sorry for him and regretted my actions. Almost.

"Did you miss me Lee?" I suddenly heard from another room. I recognized the voice as Jess-Belle's, but the words coming out of her mouth didn't make sense.

"Who are you?" I heard him ask nervously. I realized they must be getting the antidotes from the other side of the building.

"Don't you recognize me, Lee?" she asked him sweetly. "It's me, Hazel."

"No, Hazel's dead, I killed her," he said, sounding confused.

"Don't be silly, how could you have killed me if I'm right here next to you?"

"Hazel had brown hair and brown eyes, you have blonde hair and blue eyes."

"No, I am Hazel, and my hair has always been blonde and my eyes have always been blue." She coughed, then continued. "Don't you love me, Lee?"

"Of course I do," he said fervently.

"Then you have to save me, Lee. I need that antidote."

"But if I give it to you, I'll die."

"You broke the other antidote, remember? You were clumsy, and you dropped it. If you love me like you say you do, you'll let me live. You do love me, right?"

"I do, I love you so much. Take it, just take it."

"Thank you Lee, you've been a big help."

Lee died soon after that. I could hear him coughing and retching horribly through the walls, and then it just stopped. It was about that time that we were able to stand without the world spinning around us, so we got up and left the building and headed back to the Joker's mansion.

When we got there, nearly everyone was there already. Edward, who had been paired with Holly, caught my eye and winked as I entered the room, causing me to blush ever so slightly.

After a few minutes, nearly everyone had gathered in the auditorium, except for Jess-Belle and Lee. The Joker refused to free us from each other until we were all there, so even though we had completed the challenge Robin and I had to spend more "quality time" together.

After over an hour of waiting, Jess-Belle finally arrived dragging Lee's stiffening corpse. The Joker finally released us, and I saw Jess-Belle rubbing her wrist where the cuff had cut into her skin while dragging Lee, but she looked satisfied with the results of what she had done.

"I have to admit, I'm impressed with how well you all got along," said the Joker with a smile. "I expected to lose at least half of you to this one because it deals with actually getting along with others, and so I'm surprised that we only lost one."

"Will this really help us later in life?" asked Sam, whom I had heard was a genius and had been on the road to getting his medical license when he was caught doing several strange and inhumane experiments on animals, such as trying to transplant organs from a cat into a dog. He had been about to try transplanting a chimp's head onto that of a human cadaver when he had finally been caught. He had almost been sent to Blackgate, but his parents made sure he was put in Arkham instead.

"Of course it will, I've already explained this to you. Besides, if this were real you'd be to the best part by now," replied Joker.

"What's the best part?" asked Zelda.

"Why, disposing of your allies, of course! What, you didn't think I'd teach you to make life-long friendships, did you? You've all seen what happens when I make alliances, and I'm not a 'do as I say, not as I do,' kind of guy. The things you learn here will benefit you for the rest of your lives, however short they may be. Well, I think that about raps up this episode. Now remember kids, don't try any of what you see here at home," he said to the camera. "But if you do, make sure to film it and have someone send it to me!"

**~Robin's POV~**

"You know, I'm starting to think that the people here are intentionally keeping me and my girl separated. I had to spend the whole challenge listening to Bree blab about how hot Robin is, and they put Elise with Finn. It's getting really irritating," said Drake, frustrated.

"You do realize that not both of you can win this, right? At least one of you is going to die, no happily forever afters for you," said Edward as he sharpened his knife.

"Nah, the Joker will understand. I mean, he's got Harley, he knows where I'm coming from. I don't know what I'd do without my gal Elise, I'm sure he'll cut us a break."

"Whatever you say, moron," muttered Edward.

I was laying in my bed trying to tune out the other guys. Finn was already asleep, so I had no one to talk to. I was trying to fall asleep, but so far I hadn't made much progress.

I heard a door open and close, and then Johnny said, "So Jack, were you able to do it?"

I looked and saw that Jack's hands and shirt were smeared with blood, and his face was grim.

"What'd you cut off of Lee? Or did you even get to him?" asked Sam, his general scowl momentarily replaced with a look of interest.

"I got to him before the henchmen could. I cut off his face, it was the only way to completely remove the scar," he said matter-of-factly. I could tell it wasn't something he enjoyed doing, but it was something he just couldn't help doing.

"I'm sure that wherever Lee is he appreciates you making him beautiful in death, seeing as how he could never accomplish such a feat in life," said Edward with an approving grin.

"What is wrong with you guys?" I asked as I got out of the bed to face them. "Why do you all take death so lightly? Why is it that none of you can understand that how wrong your actions are? You talk about theft and murder as though they were harmless. Are you all really so far gone that you can't tell right from wrong, or do you just not care?"

They all stared at me, as though I was the crazy one.

"Why Robin, that hurt my feelings," said Johnny as he put a hand to his heart. "We can't be friends anymore if you're always saying mean things to me, you know. Friendship is a two-way street."

"You think I enjoy mutilating corpses?" Jack demanded angrily. "I hate it more than you know, but there's nothing I can do about it. Trying to fight it only makes it worse, I'm powerless against it, okay?"

"Can I use that excuse the next time I cheat on my girlfriend?" asked Johnny.

"Speaking of girlfriends…" said Edward as he got up in my face. "Today you were forced to work with Rose, completing the challenge required the two of you to work closely together. I just want you to know that the reason I haven't touched you yet is because you're slightly more valuable to the team than certain other members, and because beating you but holding back so that you can still compete just wouldn't be enough. But I swear if you come anywhere near Rose, I will not hesitate to do unspeakably horrible things to you. Your own mother won't recognize you when I'm done with you, screw the consequences. Capiche?"

I smirked up at him and said, "Hooking up isn't my top priority right now, so you have nothing to worry about. But if you feel the need to threaten every guy who so much as looks at the girl you want, what does that say about your relationship with said girl?"

His eyes filled with rage as he socked me in the jaw. Pain exploded in my jaw, but it was nothing I hadn't felt before and so I ignored it. I struck back and got him right in the nose, then quickly ducked as he sent another blow my way. The other guys started chanting "fight!" as we exchanged blows. I had to admit Edward was good, he was strong and fast and had learned from our last fight, making him a tougher opponent.

As he dodged my fist and tried to land a blow to my stomach, the door opened and Elise and Zelda came inside.

"What are you guys doing? What's this about?" asked Zelda with her hands on her hips.

"Edward and Robin are performing an ancient and sacred mating ritual that involves breaking every bone in the body of their mate," said Johnny with an amused grin. "Winner gets to be the mother of the children."

"Shut up Johnny," we both said in unison. We stopped and glared at each other, preparing to strike again if need be.

"As fun as that would be to watch, you guys had better put a stop to it. Do you know what time it is?" she asked.

"Not a clue," Johnny replied.

"Neither do I, all I know is that it's late and that I haven't been able to sleep for the past two nights and I was finally able to sleep when you guys woke me up. If you really feel the need to prove your manhood by wrestling and being noisy, how about saving it for tomorrow so we can all watch?"

"I'm not finished with you yet, Bird Boy," said Edward as he took a step back. We were done fighting for tonight, but this was far from over. "You're not worth Joker's punishment, but like I told you before, once he takes away his protection I'll tear you limb from limb."

"Greater criminals than you have tried, none have succeeded. But who knows, maybe you'll show them all up. Maybe you'll be the one to take down Batman's sidekick. We'll just have to wait and see, won't we?" I said as I turned to climb back into bed.

"Drakey, let's go," said Elise as she put her arm around Drake's and began pulling him out of the room, with Zelda following them out. Drake and Elise never slept in the dorms, they always made love in a closet or something and then slept there, and clearly tonight would be no exception.

I did my best to fall asleep, but it was very difficult, as it had been since I'd first arrived. Sleep was the only escape I had left from this hellhole, not that it provided much relief. I couldn't stop thinking about how Rose had killed those people, as though they were no more than animals. I had seen murder many times before, but to see it up close and personal, to actually watch the light leave their eyes… it unsettled me greatly. I had wanted to stop her from killing them, but given our predicament I didn't have much choice. We needed to get along, and trying to make her stop would have been pointless, and could have resulted in both our deaths. That didn't make me feel any less guilty though. I didn't think it could get much worse than this, but I had yet to realize that it was only the beginning.


	10. Chapter 10

**~Rose's POV~**

The next few days passed without event. It seemed that ever since I joined this game, every day that didn't have a challenge was incredibly boring. At least it wasn't like this place had no entertainment, though. I had spent the morning swimming, and now I was taking a walk outside. I hadn't gone very far when Harley's voice rang out over the intercom, so loud it could be heard all over Arkham City, which of course was the point.

"Attention all contestants, go to the mess hall for your next challenge right now, and I expect to see big smiles on your faces!"

I turned around and headed back for the house. I entered the mansion and found the mess hall. The Joker was already there, and he seemed to be having a conversation with the cameraman. It was hard to tell with the clown mask on, but the guy seemed nervous and was trying not to show it. Once we were all there, the Joker stood to face us and the camera guy started recording.

"Greetings, my retarded children, and welcome to your fifth challenge," said Joker with a wide smile. "You'll be pleased to know this one requires little physical effort, or at least part one does. All you have to do is go without sleep for three days, and in that time you will only be given water to drink, no food. Anyone who falls asleep during that time will be disqualified and not allowed to participate in part two of the challenge. Someone will be here to chaperone you at all times, and if you ask them for food three times you will be allowed something to eat, but you will be disqualified. Any questions?"

"Um yeah, I have a question. What's the point of this challenge?" asked Zelda.

"I can't have an apprentice fall asleep when I need him or her most, I mean, duh. Sometimes you have to go without sleep and food for extended periods of time on the job, and so I'm weeding through you kids to pick out the strong ones, the ones with the most stamina. Survival of the fittest you might say. But I'll tell you what, I'll give you something to do during your three days. Come up with a plausible way to, oh I don't know, kidnap someone maybe? Someone important." He said this with a wink, and it couldn't have been any clearer that we had better do it. "Have fun!" And with that, he left us alone. He was replaced by a middle-aged clown woman.

"Hello everyone, my name's Joy! I'll be chaperoning this challenge!" she said cheerily. Most of the hench-ladies here, I observed, didn't feel the need to smile constantly, but the ones who did apparently were the Joker's favorites and he always assigned them to our challenges, while the rest worked behind the scenes. "I brought some pens and paper for you to work with, just stay busy and the three days will fly by!"

"Somehow I doubt that," muttered Robin.

Our two teams split up and, having nothing else to do, set to work on our kidnapping plan.

"How can we make plans to kidnap someone with zero information?" I asked. "All we can do is theorize and guess as to what conditions and challenges we'd be facing."

"Joker said someone important, so there'd probably be a ton of security. It's a start," said Finn with a shrug.

"Hardly. I'm not going to try to come up with a plan with no information, I'm out," said Edward as he got up from our table.

There really was no point in trying to come up with a plan like that, so we gave up on it. For hours we sat in that room with nothing to do. I tried talking to different people, but quickly ran out of topics. I tried working on our "plan" again after that, but there was literally nothing I could come up with. Not to mention I was starting to feel hungry, and it was only made worse by the fact that I knew I wouldn't be eating anything for days. I knew could go without food for a long time, but that didn't make it any easier. Joy had given us each a water bottle but warned us to conserve, saying that once we ran out there would be no refills. I moved away from the table and walked around the room to stretch my legs, but there wasn't much room to walk. I quickly grew tired of walking and sat down against a wall and tried to ignore my pangs of hunger. I stared at the opposite wall, studying the bizarre pattern of colors intently in an attempt to distract and entertain myself. I did this for so long that the bright colors seemed to move and dance around as though they had come alive. I found myself missing the challenges that threatened my life, at least in those challenges I could do something with myself. My brain didn't have an off switch and my mind was always a whirlwind of thought, which made this challenge that much more difficult and irritating.

"Hey Scarlet," said Bree with a yawn. "You hardly ever eat, how do you deal with this? I could never do this willingly."

"Hunger goes away for the most part after a few days, after that it's not so bad," said Scarlet while examining her nails. Most of her arms were covered, but I could still see a few scars.

"Well I'm bored. Anyone wanna hear about the time I went hunting for Bigfoot?" asked Johnny.

Even though we all knew he was probably lying, everyone asked him to tell it. That's how bored we were. His story became more and more outrageous with every word he spoke, and at some point he got off topic and told us about the time he dated Vicki Vale.

Several more hours passed, and I guessed it was nighttime, although I had no way of knowing for sure as Joy wouldn't say. I stopped studying the wall before me when Edward came to sit beside me. "How you holding up?" he asked.

"Okay I guess. This is the easy part, I dread tomorrow, that's when we'll really start hurting," I told him.

"I guess I should have known the Joker would implement a challenge to test our willpower like this. I thought I was prepared, but I'd kill for a cheeseburger right about now, and it's only going to get worse."

"No doubt the Joker's getting a kick out of this. He really knows how to torment people, physically and mentally," I said.

"Talk to me," he said. "Talking will distract us from all this. It won't help much, but I'm game for anything at this point."

"There's nothing left to talk about."

"Tell me about yourself," he said.

"You first."

"All right, fine. My dad's a detective and my mom is a bounty hunter for the mob. Both wanted me to go into their line of work and they constantly argue over which side of the law I should be on, yet their marriage is somehow stronger than most. It sounds like something from a bad movie, but that's how it is. I followed in my mother's footsteps by apprenticing under my uncle as a hitman a few years back when I turned fifteen. That's why I'm here, actually." He lowered his voice and said in my ear, "I plan to kill the Joker after I win this thing."

I whispered, "Why would you want to do that? I thought you wanted to work for him."

"I'm done being an apprentice, and killing him would gain me a lot of respect in the underworld. The way I see it, this will get me close enough to him to pull it off."

"What if you can't do it? You're not exactly the first person to go after the Joker's life, you know."

"I guess we'll find out, won't we?" he said with a grin.

We talked a little while longer, mostly about me and the others. Actually, we talked about anything we could think of, down to the most random thoughts that popped into our heads out of nowhere. The next few hours, or they could have been minutes, it was hard to tell, were made somewhat easier by our strange conversation. I think my favorite part was when we discussed how the guards at Arkham could usually be caught eyeing female doctors, instead of watching their assigned patients.

As the hours passed, I began to feel myself grow tired, but not nearly as much as the others, I could tell. I didn't sleep much anyway and so the lack of sleep wasn't much of an issue, but most everyone else in here was about to tip over. The only other person still wide awake was Robin. While he wasn't looking his best, he obviously wasn't suffering from the lack of sleep. It wasn't very surprising, staying up for days was sort of in the job description for Batman's sidekicks.

At that point, I was pretty sure that we had gotten through the first day, or at least, I hoped we had. Having no knowledge of the time was like being back in the asylum, at least there we could sleep and eat. Still, I was not about to cave. I had to prove that I could endure, I had to prove it to the Joker, and to myself.

As it turns out, locking up fifteen mentally unstable teenagers in a room with no food or entertainment is never a good idea, which was clearly the Joker's intention. Tempers began to flare at the slightest provocation, and a brawl seemed almost inevitable. Insults were hurled at one another, and after living with one another for so long in a mental institution, everyone had plenty of dirt on everyone else and therefore plenty of ammo. I now saw why Joy had taken everyone's knives away at the start, the Joker didn't want to lose his victims all at once. While he would undoubtedly enjoy that, he wanted to keep this going as long as possible, and therefore sacrifices had to be made.

More time passed, and a few people began to give in. Bree fell asleep, and so did Drake. I was surprised when Zelda succumbed, I had expected her to go the full time. A few people asked for food a couple times, but never three times. They might have been unable to stay awake, but they weren't going to risk losing a challenge for a full stomach, no matter how badly they wanted to.

My hunger had been intensifying, but after a while it seemed to lessen, if only slightly. My hunger was also helping to keep my mind clear, which I happily welcomed. I still wasn't very sleepy, I could go without sleep much longer than three days (I had done it before) but my low blood sugar was sort of canceling that out. The worst part for me was just sitting there twiddling my thumbs and waiting. I hated inaction, I wanted to do something that required physical or mental effort, not something that made me want to claw my own eyes out. It was as if the Joker had designed this challenge just for me, knowing that of all of them, this one had the most potential to be my undoing. My one comfort was that if I could beat this, surely I could handle whatever else the Joker threw at me.

More people succumbed to their fatigue. Elise, although I think she chose to give in because of Drake, and Johnny and Scarlet too. Just when I had about reached a point where I felt like I was going to have to hold my eyelids open to stay awake, the door finally opened and the Joker stepped in. Our three days were up.

"Hidey-ho, children!" he said cheerfully. "Congratulations to the nine who made it through part one! If you'll follow me, I'll take you to part two!"

"Wait, aren't you going to feed us first, or let us rest?" Sam asked. He had dark circles under his eyes, and I knew I must have had the same.

"If I did that, then what good would part one have been?" asked Joker as though this should have been obvious. "Now come on, let's get this show on the road before you all collapse."

We followed him outside to the clothing store next door where he gave us our instructions. "For part two, you'll have to pull off a kidnapping, as I believe I mentioned before. Kidnapping is a common tool for bad guys, and so it's important you learn how to do it without screwing up, even when you're low on energy."

"If you wanted us to pull off a successful kidnapping when we can barely stand or think straight, much less use a weapon properly, you might as well have given us alcohol and let us get drunk for the challenge," said Jess-Belle irritatedly.

"I could have, but you would have enjoyed that too much, and it wouldn't have been nearly as fun for me," he said with a chuckle. "Now, back to your challenge. You won't be kidnapping just anyone, you'll be kidnapping our dear sweet former mayor Sharpie!"

In a manner much like when Robin was introduced, a big, burly henchman brought out Quincy Sharp, but hadn't bothered with any restraints. The man looked ragged; his clothes were old and worn and it looked like it had been a very long time since he had seen a shower. He had been the one to create Arkham City, but after everything fell apart and it was almost destroyed, the people put the blame for its failure and the problems it caused all on him, using him as a scapegoat, and demanded he step down as mayor. He tried to resist at first, but there was no way a man like him could take on the entire city and win. He had quit the job and disappeared, hiding from the press and the thugs he had locked away. Not many people knew what became of him after that. He looked petrified, his face was drained of color and dripping with sweat. He hadn't aged very well, and looked as if he was just one 'boo!' away from a heart attack. How had the Joker gotten him in Arkham City, past the shield and without detection? Maybe Bats and the police just didn't care enough about him anymore to rescue him. I knew that wasn't the real reason, but I wouldn't have been surprised if it was, given all the wonderful things he had done to Gotham.

"You're probably wondering why I didn't kidnap our current mayor. Sharpie hasn't been in Arkham City in ages, he must have missed it so terribly. As the father of Arkham City, he's done more damage to Gotham than most thugs do in their lifetime, so naturally he's the perfect candidate for assisting in the challenge," laughed Joker as he clapped Sharp on the back.

"Please Joker, I'll do anything, anything…" he pleaded desperately.

Oh please, even if I could be bought with material possessions, what would you have to offer me? The dumpster I found you sleeping in? You're a pathetic, reeking hobo who's lucky to get two meals a week and there's not a soul in Gotham who cares if you live or die. In fact, the only person who's spent any time at all thinking of your welfare is yours truly," said Joker with an amused grin on his face. "Now to state the obvious, Sharpie will be guarded, blah blah blah, you know the rest. Your job is very simple, actually. Sharpie will be kept here, and all you have to do is get him out and to your team's homebase. Freaks, your base is the daycare center next door to the left, and Dogs, yours is the pharmacy to the right." He began to leave, but turned back and said, "Oh, and you have my permission to kill Sharpie, but you do whatever you want," he said with a dismissive wave of his hand. By the Joker's behavior in these challenges, one might think he didn't care about the end results at all.

As the door swung shut behind him, seven clown guards moved in around Sharp like bodyguards.

"I guess I got my wish," I muttered to myself. Actually, despite my fatigue and growling stomach, I was happy to fight these guys. It beat sitting in a room staring at colorful wallpaper any day.

My team and I looked at the Dogs for a moment as they looked at us, waiting for the others to make the first move. Without even thinking about it, we rushed the guards at the same time the Dogs did and attacked. It was harder to do in our weaker state, but all of us together took them out rather quickly. I wondered if the Joker had sent some of the weaker ones to protect Sharpie so that we'd stand a chance against them. Probably not, but it was possible. Either way, once we were done with them, we all threw ourselves at Sharp and attempted to drag him back with us, and it turned into an all-out brawl. Both teams grabbed at his arms and legs and pulled like it was a tug-of-war as Sharp screamed in pain and pleaded helplessly for mercy. It wasn't exactly the best strategy for kidnapping, but in our sleep-deprived minds, it seemed like the best idea ever. Actually, I was still coherent enough to see how messed up this all was, but I didn't let that stop me from following the crowd. I had a challenge to win after all, and being able to think somewhat clearly meant I just got to enjoy the madness of this whole thing. The audience would think I was no better than the rest of them, when really I was just as lucid as ever, which made it even better.

During the fight, Robin pulled away and shouted at us to stop, but of course no one listened. He tried to force us to stop, but he was powerless against all of us. We were no better than savages, which for some reason I found to be quite amusing. Someone knocked Robin out after a while, allowing us to act like Neanderthals in peace.

As the brawl progressed, some people used up what little energy they had left and dropped to the floor gasping for air, some passing out right on the spot. The rest of us began to fight each other while trying not to lose hold of Sharp, but fight is too loose a term for what we were doing. It probably looked more like a bunch of drunks stumbling around, but even so some of us were able to get a few good hits in. I don't know who did it, but during the fight I was knocked to the floor and my head collided with the ground. My head wound combined with everything else was too much, and once I was on the ground, I didn't want to move ever again. Right then that floor was more comfortable than any pillow. I knew I had a few bruises and cuts, but I could barely feel them through the haze in my mind.

In the end, it came down to Jack vs. Finn. Their duel didn't last long though; Jack punched Finn in the stomach and took off with Sharp. I laid down on the floor, no longer caring that we were going to lose again. I finally let myself succumb to sleep, not that I had much say in the matter. My body couldn't fight any longer, and so I gave in.

**~Robin's POV~**

I was woken up by freezing water being dumped on my body by one of the henchmen. My eyes shot open and, gasping, I took in my surroundings. We were in the auditorium, and everyone was getting ice water dumped on them, resulting in a chorus of startled shouts and angry cursing. I could see the Wheel of Misfortune; we had lost, and it was time to eliminate someone from my team. There would be no technicality to save us this time, we had to face the music.

The Joker walked out on stage, carrying a limp Quincy Sharp over his shoulder. My head throbbed, and with my exhaustion and hunger, it took all my remaining energy just to focus on the situation before me. The Joker put Sharp down but held onto him, and I noticed that Sharp looked very pale, battered, and broken. I noticed that there was a lot of blood on his clothes, and that one of his arms was hanging by a bit of skin while other was gone completely. I had a bad feeling about what had happened to him. The cameraman signaled to Joker, and he began to speak.

"Well kids, I hardly know what to say about your performance today," he began stoically. "It was one of the most depraved things I have ever seen, and I've seen a lot of depravity in my lifetime. Giving into your most primal instincts and doing what you did to each other, and to Sharpie. You should all be ashamed of yourselves, which is why I'm so proud of you all tonight," he said as he wiped away a tear with a proud grin. "I expected one or two of you to try to kill the poor vagrant, but even I was surprised when you trampled him to death and tore him apart like a ragdoll, you were worse than the crowds on Black Friday. I'm sure you were all too out of it to realize that you were killing him, which makes his death even funnier. But alas, despite the wonderful job you did today, the Freaks must now choose one of their own to kick the bucket."

Harley passed around slips of paper, pens, and a hat. As I contemplated my vote, I thought back to the challenge. The memory was fuzzy, but I could make out enough to be repulsed by it. Of course the Joker was proud, we had been no better than animals, myself included. It took me a lot longer than it should have to realize things were getting out of hand, the first part of the challenge had slowed my reflexes and made thinking clearly extremely difficult. Not only that, but I knew I played a part in the man's death. Even though I really didn't like him, the guy was dead, and part of the blame was on me. But right now I needed to focus on the task at hand. Tonight, I would play a part in someone else's death, again. Two people would be dead by tonight, one was already gone, the other could possibly be chosen by me. I had to vote, or the Joker would set off his bombs. I was tempted to resist him; after all, if there actually were bombs, surely Bruce and the police would have found them all and disarmed them by now, but I had no way of knowing for sure, and I couldn't risk the chance that they hadn't and have the blood of so many on my hands. I eventually chose Edward, not out of spite, but because I doubted anyone else would be voting for him, at least not yet.

Harley collected our votes and passed them to the Joker, who counted them just as he had before. He then announced, "And tonight's loser is… Gollum!"

His words instantly snapped me out of my stupor, and as I stood to protest, I felt a hand on my arm. I looked and saw Violet shaking her head. I watched helplessly as Finn stood and said, "I will accept his fate, but not without a fight." His voice was slightly higher pitched, and I realized with horror that "Aunt Lydia" had taken over and was going to try to take down the Joker, just as Nigel had tried to do. She was determined to try to defeat the Joker because she was willing to die to save Finn, unable to comprehend the fact that if she died, he would still die, regardless.

As Finn pulled out his knife and slashed at the Joker, I could tell that Lydia had absolutely no skill with a knife, causing several people from both teams to laugh at him. I wondered if they knew he wasn't himself, or if they even cared. They had voted for him because he lost the challenge, but at least he had made it farther than the rest of us. This was completely unfair, and I felt a mix of anger and sadness as I decided there was no way I was just going to let this continue. He was my only friend here, and I couldn't stand to see this happen. I had made him a promise, and while it had been sort of an impossible promise to keep, I couldn't go back on it. For a moment I forgot the consequences of what I was about to do and I got out of my seat and ran to help him, even though on some level I knew there was no way we could win this. The Joker produced one of his razor-sharp playing cards and threw it at Finn, lodging it deep in his throat. Finn spluttered and coughed up blood before collapsing, and then the Joker turned his attention on me. Even though the Joker didn't look like he could last five minutes in a fight, I knew better, I knew what to expect, but for all my training, there was no way I could beat him in my condition. I got in a few punches, but he took me down with humiliating speed and ease. He grabbed me by the front of my suit and looked me right in the eye as he spoke.

"I thought we had a deal, Chuckles," he said, his face still smiling but his voice deathly quiet. "You know the rules, but you tried to cheat anyway. I'll just have to punish you, like a good mentor should. Don't worry, I won't set off the bombs just yet. I have other ways of teaching you to play by the rules."

He dropped me to the floor and then turned back to face the camera as he said, "It's too bad Gollum had to go the way he did, Sharpie really wanted to spin that Wheel. I'm just guessing though, since he's being awful quiet. Don't touch that dial folks, 'cause we'll be back as soon as I perk these kids back up. Maybe a good ole cup of joe, or ten. Next time I might just read some of the fan mail you've all been sending me, I'm sure that would be entertaining!"

He signed off the episode, and I tried to stand and go back to the dorm room with as much dignity as I could muster, feelings of utter loathing for the Joker surging through me.


	11. Chapter 11

_**Author's Note:**__ I want to apologize for this chapter in advance because it's really not my best work, or at least the challenge itself isn't. Writer's block is the cruelest form of torture for any writer, as I know many of you know all too well, and it's probably my character's way of getting revenge for killing them off. Not to mention I also had finals this week, which didn't help anything. Fortunately though, this was the only challenge that really suffered, and the rest should be much more interesting. When I was creating this story in my head, long before I started writing it, I came up with many great ideas for challenges, but unfortunately not all of them measure up. But don't let this stop you from reading it, because the end of this chapter is a turning point for our dear Boy Wonder. Hopefully you'll enjoy this chapter regardless of my writer's block, and thank you for all the kind reviews._

**~Rose's POV~**

I don't think I've ever slept as long as I did after that mind-numbing challenge, but even so I still didn't sleep as much as the others. Most of them slept nearly two days and even after all that they still felt drained. Robin and I were the only ones who didn't hibernate after the challenge, we slept only a few hours longer than we normally would. I decided to take advantage of this by stealing everyone's underwear and stringing it up a flagpole. I invited him to join me but he turned me down, which didn't surprise me, but I was able to amuse myself despite him being such a stick in the mud.

The day after everyone was functional again, just after breakfast, the Joker announced the next challenge in the mess hall. Of course there was a camera guy there to film us, and gradually, I was becoming more and more comfortable being in front of the camera. In fact, I was kind of starting to like it.

"Before I tell you about today's challenge, I want to do a little recap for the people just now getting into the show of what's happened so far." Harley rolled a TV in front of the camera and inserted a DVD. The disc showed a bunch of clips from different episodes all mashed up together in a way that made no sense at all unless you already knew what had happened, otherwise you were on your own. I guess that the clips shown were the Joker's favorites from each episode, as he seemed to enjoy the video more than anyone else.

"Well that was fun. Now back to business. Today's challenge will be very simple and straightforward, and although it should be pretty difficult to screw up, I'm sure you'll find a way. For today's challenge, you'll be robbing a bank. Nothing special, I just want to see if you're capable of committing crimes competently. I'll probably fall asleep watching you kids on this one, so in an effort to keep myself interested I'm going to take away your knives. While bloodshed is more fun than a barrel of monkeys, it'll be better this way so that this challenge will actually be challenging, and I'm curious to see what you'll do to compensate. So let's get it over with quickly so we can get to the more exciting challenges I have in store for you. Outside there are two vans waiting to take you to one of the older banks, one that went out of business before most of you were born. Whichever team can steal more money wins, like I said, very simple and straightforward. Now go, before this challenge bores me to death," he said with a sigh.

We left the house, but not before handing over our knives to Joker, and sure enough there were two vans waiting there for us. Jess-Belle took the wheel of one and I drove the other. Inside was a GPS that showed me where to go. As I drove to the abandoned bank, I thought about the challenge before me. I had to agree with the Joker; while it likely wouldn't be easy, there was no way to was going to be the most exciting challenge in this game. Still, it had to be better than the previous challenge. At least here I'd be doing something, instead of sitting around listening to myself inhale and exhale.

It didn't take very long to get to the bank. It wasn't very big, and it looked like all it needed was one good kick to knock it down. My team and I, along with the Dogs, looked through the broken windows to try to see what we were up against. Inside there were over twenty henchmen and hench-ladies, all of them in their usual clown getup but also wearing different uniforms, such as guard and teller uniforms. They were all acting natural, as if they didn't know they were part of a huge game. I noticed they all carried guns, but I couldn't tell if they were lethal or tranquilizers. Either way, they weren't going to make this easy for us, not that I had expected them to.

"So how are we going to do this?" asked Zelda. "We've lost twice in a row now, we can't afford to lose any more of our team."

"This is just like all the times Drakey and I robbed those banks, I wish so much that he could be here with me now," said Elise wistfully. "I'll tell you this, if we're going to do this right we'll have to form a strategy so that we can take down the henches in there before they get us. Once we've done that, all we'll have to worry about is getting the money and taking care of the Dogs."

"Another one of those friendship-building, feel-good challenges, what fun," said Edward as he rolled his eyes. "We seem to be pretty evenly matched, so neither team has the numbers advantage. Since there are only seven of us, we don't have much manpower, so we need to choose who does what part of the job. Rose, Zelda, and I will work on taking down the guards and such since we're the best fighters, and the rest of you will go get the money. Robin, I would have you help us with the guards, but you're still too much of a wuss to kill, right?"

Robin shot him a dark look but said nothing. The look on his face would have made children cry, but Edward seemed unfazed.

"I guess it's settled then. Robin, take your little tea party around back and find another way in. Come with me, ladies," said Edward.

"We are just as important to this group as you are," said Bree angrily.

"Of course you are," said Edward condescendingly. "Get to work."

By the time Edward, Zelda and I had entered the building, the Dogs had disappeared. I wondered what their strategy was, and if they would cause problems for the rest of our team. We moved as quietly as possible, and in that moment I really wished the Joker had let us keep our knives. The three of us could be very deadly, but even together the odds of us against twenty plus henchman were kind of slim, especially when all we had to work with was our bare hands and anything else we might find. We spread out, and I moved behind one of the desks and snapped the neck of the man behind it and took his gun. I was about to move on to the next guy when several shots were fired. I stole a quick look and saw that Zelda had also gotten her hands on a gun and had begun to shoot. Normally I wouldn't have had a problem with that, but our mission required stealth and now the clowns were all alerted to our presence. They all pulled out their guns and began firing, and it became clear that they were using real guns. The Joker had set this up to be a realistic robbery, and of course they would have real guns.

I ducked out of sight and crawled across the floor out of the line of fire until I reached another desk. I shot the woman who had been firing at Edward and dropped back down to the floor as a bullet whizzed by my head. As I did, I suddenly came face to face with Johnny and Drake. They both looked excited by the action

"What are you guys doing here?" I hissed.

"Forming a conga line with the henchmen," said Johnny sarcastically. "What do you think we're doing?"

"Apparently we're using the same strategy. Johnny and me and Jess-Belle and Sam are working on killing the guys in here while the rest go get the money. You wait and see, once we've taken out the henches, the fight for the money will be like World War III," said Drake with a grin. But then he became serious and asked, "Do you know if Elise is okay?"

"I don't know, we split up," I replied with an indifferent shrug.

"I guess no news is good news. What I wouldn't give to be doing this with her, she's the best partner-in-crime I guy could ever hope to have. Well, back to killing." And with that, they both took off. I got up on my knees and fired off a few shots and then quickly ducked for cover again. The others did the same, until we had finished them all off. Once we had accomplished that, it was just a matter of getting the money. It really was a very simple challenge, and the Joker was sure to be asleep by now because of it.

We went to the back rooms and found the others from both teams working on cracking a safe. Violet had her ear pressed against it and was turning the knob back and forth. Some of the guys went to search for something to force the door open, but there was nothing we could use. After what felt like an eternity, Violet finally got the safe open, revealing huge stacks of money.

"We're rich!" exclaimed Drake, and he hugged Elise excitedly.

I noticed something odd about the bills, and pulled one out to check. "Not so fast guys. I may be wrong, but I don't think this is real money. Look at the picture." I held it out for them to see. The Joker's smiling face was printed on it.

"What!" shouted Drake. "All this work for a bunch of worthless Joker dollars? I can't believe this!"

"Joker's got to entertain himself somehow with this challenge," I said with a shrug. "Come on guys, let's start looting."

There was nothing to carry the money in unfortunately, so both teams began grabbing as much money as they could carry. Surprisingly, only a few people tried to steal from others, but for the most part we were too busy stuffing our own pockets to try to take from the others.

Once we had all the money we could possibly carry, our team ran outside and got back in the van. We got back seconds after the Dogs and ran inside to the auditorium. We ran up on stage and dumped our money in a pile and the Dogs did likewise, but made sure to keep our bills separated. The Joker and Harley were in the first row of seats, with Joker lying down with his head on Harley's lap. Harley was lovingly stroking his green locks, but stopped as soon as they noticed us. The Joker got up and went up on stage with Harley following close behind.

"Well kids, I hope you enjoyed that challenge more than I did," he said. "I wasn't up to my usual standards on that one, but I've got challenges in store that'll really knock your socks off. But for now, Harley, be a dear and count the money."

"Sure thing Mistah J!" she said as she got down to her knees and began counting. It took her several minutes, and she lost count a few times, but she finally counted the amount of both piles of cash.

"We got three thousand, five hundred dollars for the Dogs, give or take," she announced. "And as for the Freaks, we got three thousand, six hundred dollars!"

"Congratulations Freaks, you cut it real close there, but you won nonetheless! Good thing too, wouldn't want to lose three times in a row, now would we? Well Dogs, you know what time it is," said Joker as he clapped his hands together.

The Dogs grudgingly cast their votes while Harley brought out the Wheel, and then Joker counted the votes to see who would die tonight.

"And tonight's victim is… the Artist!"

Jack stood up and tried to run, but Harley grabbed him before he could and dragged him back. The Joker pulled a plastic bag of multi-colored beads out of nowhere and poured them out on the floor, which of course kept Jack from running. He let out a strangled cry of anger, frustration, and fear and got down on his hands and knees to sort them, quietly cursing the Joker as he did so, with beads of sweat running down his face. Harley spun the wheel, which landed on death by strangulation.

"Normally I'd do the killing myself or let Harl do it, do it, but tonight we're going to have someone else do it. A guest executioner, you could say. Chuckles, come on down, my boy!"

**~Robin's POV~**

The world seemed to stop spinning when he spoke those words. I didn't move, I just stared at the madman before me. Harley came up and dragged me by the arm to where the Joker stood. I couldn't believe this was happening, the Joker was going to force me to kill Jack. It had always been a possibility, but I hadn't really expected him to actually make me do it. Sure, I'd expected him to tempt me into killing, but actually forcing me to do it? I should never have underestimated him, I should have expected something like this to happen and planned a way out, but I hadn't, and now I was paying the price for my foolishness.

I finally found my voice and said, "I will not kill Jack."

"Remember the last episode when you so rudely interrupted Finn's death ceremony? I didn't like that Chuckles. Not. One. Bit," said Joker menacingly. "When a child misbehaves, you have to discipline them to make sure it doesn't happen again, and so here is your punishment." Harley brought over a piece of rope and handed it to me.

"No," I told him, all my rage at being forced to play this horrible game and my hatred of him coming out in every word I spoke. "You can keep me here against my will, you can make me play your so-called game, but you cannot make me take a life. That's where I draw the line Joker, and I will not compromise my morals to save my own skin."

"Maybe not your own, but what about the skin of the people you so valiantly defend?" asked the Joker as Harley pulled back the curtains, revealing a TV screen like the ones in theaters. On the screen was the largest and most popular park in Gotham, where dozens of children played every day while their parents socialized. A man walked in the center of the screen, and the Joker whipped out a detonator and pressed the button. The man exploded right before my eyes, wiping out everyone in the vicinity. In just seconds, all that remained was a ruined park and burning corpses littering the ground, and the man was nowhere to be found, his body having been completely consumed by the explosion.

"Anyone up for round two?" asked the Joker as the image of the park was replaced by the orphanage. Harley squealed with excitement and put her hands on his shoulders as he pulled out another detonator with a wicked grin on his face.

"No!" I screamed. "Please, don't hurt anyone else. Please, I'll do anything, anything except murder."

"Sounds tempting, but what I want is for you to kill Jack, and if you don't the kiddie home goes boom boom," giggled Joker.

"Please leave them alone, don't make me do this. It's all I have left," I pleaded desperately.

"You know what you have to do to save them," he said simply.

I had the power to save those kids, but I would have to take a life, something I had sworn to never do. But I was left with no other options, it was dozens of children or this one condemned boy. If I didn't act Jack would die anyway, and all those innocent kids would join him. The Joker's smile stretched eagerly from ear to ear as I took the rope and wrapped it around Jack's neck. I could tell by the way he stiffened that he wanted to fight back but couldn't, and it made it that much harder to do the job. He had picked up half the beads, and despite everything in him yelling at him to run or fight back, his disorder made him powerless against me.

"I'm sorry," I whispered as I pulled the rope tight, cutting off his flow of oxygen. He finally stopped picking up beads and tried to pull the rope away but I was stronger, and just a minute or two later he was dead at my feet. I dropped to my knees and dropped the rope in shame and remorse. It didn't matter that I had been forced to kill him, what mattered was that I had given in despite pledging not to. If Bruce had been in this situation, I was sure he could have found a way to save those people and Jack, actually, he probably would have escaped weeks ago and brought down the Joker by now. And Dick and Jason… both probably would have beaten him by now, but not me. I was powerless against the Joker, and a disgrace to the Robin name. I had failed Bruce in the worst way possible, how could I ever look him in the eye again? I was weak, and the Joker was beating me. Would he make me kill again? Or would he be satisfied now? It wouldn't be the latter, the Joker wouldn't be satisfied until he had drained all the good out of me, or killed me. Either way, I was losing, and the stakes were life or death. I would keep trying to win, to beat the Joker, but I was having trouble holding onto that fleeting hope.

xxxx

That night, I barely slept, but the little sleep I did get was filled with horrible nightmares. Not the kind of nightmares where you're chased by monsters, no, these were far worse.

It was the same dream over and over, like a broken record. It always begins in the park where the massacre had happened, but the area is foggy and gray. For some reason no one has attempted to move the bodies, no one is even attempting to identify them or locate their families. The bodies just lie there, staring at me with their cold, dead eyes as though judging me, wondering why I let this happen to them.

"_You failed me, Tim."_

I spin around and see Batman glaring at me. His expression isn't angry, it's filled with disappointment. The way he looks and speaks to me, I wish he would yell at me or punish me in some way, but he doesn't. Just as he wouldn't in real life, although I never realize it's a dream until I wake up.

"Bruce, I'm sorry, there was nothing I could do!" I plead to him, but he doesn't seem to hear me.

"_You broke our one rule, the one you swore to never break. I trusted you, and you let me down by taking a life. How could you do this, Tim? I thought you were better than the scum of this city, but clearly I was wrong."_

"_You're weak Tim. You should have beaten the Joker by now,"_ says Dick, who appears from out of the mist. _"You're a disgrace to the Robin name."_

"_Even in death I refused to let the Joker bring me down to his level,"_ says Jason, who appears in between Bruce and Dick. I never met him, so his face is a blur, but I still recognize him somehow in the Robin costume, though it is torn and splattered with his own blood. _"You're a monster, just like him. It's only going to get worse Tim, you should have let yourself be killed, but instead you chose to become a murderer."_

"No! I'm not a murderer, I had no choice! The Joker didn't even give me the option of death, there was nothing I could do! I had to save those people, countless lives would have been lost if I hadn't done something!"

"_You're a disgrace, a traitor!"_ Dick shouts.

"_Anyone of us could have found a way to save Jack and the people in the park, but you chose the coward's way out. Look at your hands! Jack's blood, and the blood of all your future victims drips from your hands,"_ Jason says with utter contempt.

I look down, and sure enough my hands are covered in blood so red it's almost black. I try to wipe it off but it does no good.

"_If you come out of this alive, don't bother putting the cape and mask back on. You've shamed us all, how can we convince this city we're trying to help them when you crumble under the pressure and become no better than the evil we fight?"_ growls Dick.

"_Murderer! Coward! Fool! Disgrace! Traitor!"_ Jason and Dick scream at me in unison.

"There was nothing I could do! Please listen to me!" I beg as I cover my ears, which does nothing to muffle the sound of their voices.

"_You're no longer my son,"_ Bruce says quietly as he turns away, unable to face me.

"No! Bruce please, please forgive me! I did the only thing I could, and I'm sorry!" The man who was like a father to me was abandoning me, and I knew I deserved it, but I couldn't let it happen. Desperately, like a child, I grab his cape to try to hold him back. I would never resort to something so pathetic in real life, but in my dreams I am only an observer, yet I experience all the pain nonetheless. Tears run down my face as I say, "Please Bruce, you don't know what I've gone through in here, I know what I did was wrong, but there was nothing else I could do. Can't you understand that?"

"_There's nothing to understand. You've become just like them, you may as well be dead."_

He and Dick and Jason disappear into the mist, and that's when I wake up, and even though the dream has ended I find no relief in waking. I know they probably don't hate me like they do in the dream, but I know they must be disappointed in me. As I sit up in bed, reeling from the nightmare, I can't help but wonder if dream-Jason was right. Maybe it would be better if I was dead. I didn't want to die, but what if I really was becoming a monster? The thought of becoming like the people I fought and put in Arkham, the people who couldn't care less about the lives they stole, terrified me more than anything else ever had before. I wasn't about to kill myself, I would not give up that easily, I would go down fighting the Joker as best I could. But perhaps death was the most desirable outcome of this whole thing, as the chance of being rescued before the Joker finally killed me was growing smaller and smaller with every challenge.

_**Author's Note: **__I know, I know, Jason was resurrected and became the Red Hood. But for the purposes of this story, he was never brought back to life. The reason for this is because I wanted to explore how Tim feels about being the third Robin. Now, I'm no expert on Tim Drake or any of the other Robins (Joker and Harley are more my forte) but he probably feels like he has a lot to live up to, he doesn't want to fail Bruce or Gotham. Maybe not to a huge extent, but I figure he must want to prove himself, to prove that he is worthy of being at Batman's side and wearing the Robin mask, and I wanted to explore that a bit in this story._


	12. Chapter 12

**~Rose's POV~**

The next day, another challenge began without any warning. We were woken up and taken to a large room that appeared to be an infirmary by one of the henchmen. Once we were all inside, a strange smelling gas pervaded the air and froze me in place. I couldn't move at all or even speak, and neither could anyone else. Thirteen henchmen wearing gas-masks that had been altered to resemble clown masks suddenly entered the room through the back door and attacked. There was one henchman for each of us, and they each held a different weapon of some kind, and didn't waste any time in using them. One of them came up to me and roasted me with a flamethrower. He blasted my right arm and shoulder and then abruptly stopped and left the room. The pain made me want to scream, but I couldn't even do that. I had no way of unleashing the feelings of searing agony within me, which made the wound seem that much worse. I was good at dealing with pain, and of course I'd been burned before, but never like this. The henchmen finished up and disappeared as quickly as they had come, but the one who had attacked me left the flamethrower. In fact, they all left their weapons behind. The gas stopped coming in and wore off within seconds. As soon as I could move again, my eardrums were assaulted by incredibly loud wails of suffering, my own included.

"Hellooo kids, and welcome to today's challenge!" said the Joker's voice over the intercom. He had to shout to be heard over all the cries and groans of pain. "Listen to all of you, screaming like banshees. You must be very eager to begin the game!" he giggled. "Today you will learn to treat your injuries with the limited supplies in the infirmary. Knowing how to stich yourself back together is an important skill for any super villain, because if you have to go to the hospital, you may as well head over to your local police station instead and save yourself some time. Your injuries are all potentially lethal, they could kill you in a few minutes or a few weeks, so if I were you I'd get to work fast. Sadly, there will be no elimination ceremony, I know how disappointed you all must be to hear that."

I focused on ignoring the pain, which wasn't easy. At least I knew it couldn't be third degree, otherwise I wouldn't feel anything from it. Tentatively, I looked down at my arm, and I kind of wished I hadn't. From my wrist up to my shoulder, every inch of flesh was bright red and covered in angry blisters. I noticed a sink and filled it with cool water and soaked as much of my arm as I could, soothing the pain slightly. I needed more than just cold water for a burn like this, but every time I tried to pull it out the pain flared up again, as if my body was punishing me for the abuse it was being put through.

"Here, this will help," said Robin quietly in the seat next to the sink. He handed me a small tub of aloe. He looked like he hadn't slept in weeks and his expression was neutral, but even after all he had been put through that need to protect and help people was still there, even amongst his enemies.

"Thanks," I said as I accepted the ointment. I slowly pulled my screaming arm out of the water and gently massaged the aloe into my skin, and felt a bit of glorious relief. Even though my arm still throbbed terribly, the aloe seemed to absorb some of the pain.

I looked at Robin's injuries, and saw that he looked like he'd been mauled by a dog. There were nasty bite marks all over his body, and he was using alcohol to disinfect them, wincing at the sting.

"Did they set the Joker's hyenas on you?" I asked him curiously.

"The guy used some kind of tool that had been shaped like a dog's teeth," he replied simply. "Probably molded from the hyena's jaws."

"You want some help?" I asked, seeing as I kind of owed him for the aloe. I didn't really care about paying back debts, but it would give me an excuse to talk to him. Even though he wouldn't know fun if it bit him in the rear, I found that I enjoyed our little talks. We were polar opposites, which made our little battles of wit highly amusing. That is, when he actually participated, which wasn't very often.

He shook his head and turned away to bandage his wounds, which I took to mean the conversation was over. Oh well, there was always next time.

"I think I was injected with snake venom," said Bree, her voice full of fear. She held up a small vial with a picture of a snake and a skull and crossbones and a needle. "What do I do?"

"You need anti-venom, there should be some in here somewhere if that's what you were injected with," said Sam, who had been stabbed in his feet and hands with multiple screwdrivers. His face contorted in pain as he slowly attempted to extract the tools.

"Lucky we have a doctor in the house," said Zelda with a roll of her eyes, her voice strained and her teeth gritted as she attempted to dig a bullet out of her shoulder with her bare hands.

"Whoa, I bet that smarts," said Edward as he sat down in the chair next to me. It didn't take me long to see what had been done to him. There were two nails lodged in his forearms and two in his shoulders, and judging by the blood staining his pants, I was pretty sure there were two more in his knees.

"They got you with a nailgun?"

"Yeah, and I'm trying to get them out without causing myself further harm. You mind helping me? That is, if you can."

"Sure, just as soon as I bandage my arm." I found bandages and began wrapping up my arm, which was difficult with only one hand. My arm had also begun to swell, which made it even more difficult. Edward tried to help some, but he was no healer. As we tried to wrap up my arm, I couldn't help noticing how handsome he was, despite the skull makeup. I felt closer to him than I did anyone else in here, which wasn't saying much, but still. There was something about him that I liked.

As soon as my arm was bandaged (more or less) we set to work on the nails in his body. There were no tools for this kind of thing of course, so we would have to cut and pull them out with our hands which, needless to say, wasn't easy. I set to work on one of his knees while he tried to cut one of the nails out of his arm.

"Um, Sam, I think I was injected with some kind of poison, too. The guy who did it left the bottle behind," said Scarlet as she held up a vial. It also had a picture of a skull and crossbones, but this one also had actual words on it. Sam leaned over to examine it. One of his hands still had a screwdriver in it and the other was bleeding profusely as he tried to staunch the flow, so she had to hold it up for him to read.

"Ouch!" said Edward as I successfully removed the first nail from his knee.

"Sorry, but these things just don't want to come out," I said as I set to work on the next. He had made little progress with the nail he was working on, and I could see the pain and effort in his face as he attempted to pull it out.

"There aren't any pain killers in here, are there?" he asked as sweat droplets form on his forehead with the effort of removing the nail. "The stronger the better."

"Please, you really think the Joker would show mercy like that? Unless you're thinking of a different clown."

"You can't blame a guy for trying."

"It's cyanide," said Sam indifferently. "You'll be dead in a matter of minutes if you don't find the antidote quickly."

"What is the antidote?" Scarlet asked worriedly.

"Why do you care?" asked Jess-Belle as she held a pack of ice against a huge lump on her forehead. "You've wanted to die for years, and now you finally have the chance."

"You would have been right a few weeks ago, but this game has been making me think about a lot of things. I've wasted so much of my life in the asylum feeling sorry for myself and wishing for death. I've hurt all my family and friends, and playing this game has finally made me want to live again." Sam told her the antidote, and she immediately went searching for it. Even though she was already becoming pale and her steps were a bit wobbly, she looked happier than I'd ever seen her before. "I've realized that I want my old life back, and that I don't need to cut to make the pain go away. My heart's not been in this game, but now I'm going to fight and do my best to win this thing."

"That's wonderful, Scarlet!" said Bree as she hugged her. She had found the anti-venom and so she was doing better than the majority of us.

"This change won't last, you know," said Jess-Belle cruelly. "You think you're getting better, and you might for a little while, but pretty soon you'll be back to cutting and starving yourself, you'll be holding a gun to your head, praying for the courage to pull the trigger."

"You're wrong," said Scarlet determinedly. "I'll show all of you." She found the antidote and injected it into her arm.

"Who'd have…hahahaha! Thought this game… hahaha! Could cure someone of… hahahaha! Their mental issues," said Johnny, who had been given the Joker's laughing gas and could barely talk in between fits of hysterical laughter. He was searching for the anti-toxin but had so far been unsuccessful.

"It's like Death Therapy," I said as I pulled out another nail and Edward groaned in pain. When I didn't get a response, I said, "Oh come on, don't tell me I'm the only one who's seen that movie."

"What, you… hahaha! Think just because…hahaha! We're crazy we've… hahaha! Seen every movie about crazy people?" asked Johnny. "It was a good… hahahaha! Movie by the way."

I opened my mouth to reply, but as I did Scarlet began coughing and wheezing for air. She staggered back and grasped her throat with her hands as hives began to break out all over her rapidly swelling skin. Her face filled with fear and shock as she fell on all fours, gasping desperately for air.

"She must be allergic to the antidote," said Sam matter-of-factly, as though this was some kind of experiment and there was nothing wrong with her.

"Someone do something!" cried Bree. "Sam, can't you do something?"

"I can't use my hands, how am I supposed to help her? Besides, she's already dead."

He was right. She had stopped wheezing and gasping for air and was now perfectly still. It was one of the most ironic things I had ever seen. She couldn't kill herself when she wanted to die, but once she decided to live, her life was taken from her. The universe's sense of humor was almost as dark and twisted as the Joker's.

"I hope they let us out of here soon, before she starts to stink," said Jess-Belle as she went back to treating her head wound.

I went back to helping Edward. He had finally managed to remove the nail from his right arm and was now working on the left. "You know, your burn is going to make it really hard for you to fight," he said.

"Not really. The guy got my right arm, I'm a lefty. It shouldn't hinder my fighting abilities very much. Were you hoping to eliminate some competition?"

"No, just stating a fact," he said with a grin that was more a grimace. "I'd love to get to know you better, you know, when I'm not in horrible pain."

I grinned back at him and said, "Ditto."

"Ew, you love birds go build your love nest somewhere else, will ya?" said Johnny, who had finally found the anti-toxin and was returning to normal. "You guys are almost as bad as Bonnie and Clyde over there."

Drake and Elise had finished taking care of their wounds and were now passionately making out in the corner.

"Elise, what did I tell you about making love with the enemy?" said Edward exasperatedly.

"I thought I told you to stay away from her Drake, they'll use her to get secrets out of you for their team," said Jess-Belle sternly.

Drake and Elise both flipped them the bird and continued kissing. I expected their clothes to come off any second, even though they were in public.

It took about another hour for everyone to finish treating their wounds. Edward and I finally got the last few nails out of him and bandaged him up after cleaning the holes in his flesh. Violet's arms had been doused with some kind of acid, and so they looked about as good as my arm did. She had done an impressive job of caring for her wounds, better than what I had been able to do for mine. Holly's skin had been sliced open with a knife in several different places, leaving many long, jagged cuts all over her body, but nothing too serious. She didn't seem very bothered by her injuries, it was like she didn't even know they were there. She hadn't even tried to treat them, they all hung open like wide smiles. All she did was hum_ Mary Had a Little Lamb_.

Once we were more or less taken care of, a couple clown-faced henchmen came and brought us back to the mess hall. For dinner we were served pizza, which actually wasn't so bad. Either Harley's skills were improving, or Cookie was losing his edge. Either way, it was a welcome change from the crap we were usually fed.

After dinner, the Joker kept his word and didn't hold an elimination ceremony despite the fact that he clearly really wanted to, but Scarlet's death seemed to cheer him up. He signed off the episode, and we were allowed to do whatever the heck we wanted. With our injuries there really wasn't much to do though, so I went back to the library, as did Robin. He seemed relieved that he wouldn't have to kill anyone this time, but that relief did little to ease his misery. As he tried to focus on the book he had selected, I found watching him endure his pain to be rather fascinating. Anyone else watching this would feel sorry for him, but I wanted to kill him, I wanted to torment him in every possible way before I delivered the blow that would finally end him, but at the same time I was actually kind of glad he was under protection. This way we could play a little longer. He would likely be dead soon, hopefully by my hand, then he would no longer be a threat, and he wouldn't have to suffer anymore. Like killing two birds with one stone, everyone would win, sort of.

**~Outside Arkham City~**

As Batman, Bruce had seen many terrible things in his lifetime. He had seen and faced monsters, and he had seen people die at the hands of those monsters. He never grew accustomed to it, not really, but he had seen it so many times he had learned to not let it affect him. But what he saw on television every few nights or so was in a league of its own, it was so horrible and cruel he wanted to turn it off, but couldn't. If Robin died, he needed to know as soon as it happened.

He couldn't decide if the episode he was watching was worse than the others or not. They had been severely wounded on purpose, which was appalling to watch, but at least they hadn't been ordered to kill each other, not yet anyway. He hated to watch it, but then again it wasn't like he or anyone else in Gotham had much choice. Even though the Joker broadcast at irregular intervals, he made sure everyone was watching by hijacking every station. But he had noticed that more and more people were becoming interested in the show and the contestants, as if this were a normal, harmless game show. It was all they could talk about anymore; they would argue with their friends over who they believed would win, and many wagered on who would die next. It disgusted him, but it was the least of his problems right now.

"Those kids are troopers, no doubt about that! Just goes to show that you don't have to be crazy to play this game, but it helps," laughed the Joker as the feed cut back to him. The Joker made sure the audience got every graphic detail of each challenge, but also made sure he got more than his fair share of face time in each episode, as well. Batman was surprised to see that the Joker was actually teaching them useful skills, and not just torturing them for his own amusement, which he was still doing, of course. "Who's willing to bet little Star-Shine will finally kick the bucket? Or perhaps Raggedy Anne and Andy, the dolls who will probably end up smothering each other. Bet high folks! After all, the higher you bet the more likely you are to win!" he laughed.

The feed cut back to the kids, and then all of a sudden the Joker's face appeared before him again on the computer screen, except this time he was looking right at him.

"Hidey-ho Bats! Are you enjoying the show?"

Bruce had to fight the powerful urge to smash the batcomputer. Thank God he still had his mask on. "How did you send me this message?"

"Let's just say I know a guy. I didn't even think this would work, I would pay him extra, if I hadn't already killed him. Don't pretend you're not happy to see me, darling."

"Stop this now Joker. End the game now."

"I can't do that, it's a ratings bonanza! Tell me Bats, who's the sick one? Me, for hosting this little shindig, the kids, for playing it, or the audience, for watching it? Sure, I've been hijacking the airwaves, but these people could just turn their televisions off if they didn't want to watch, but they do. Does it depress you to know that the people you've dedicated your life to saving are all just as sick, if not sicker, than I?"

Bruce ignored him. "Let those kids go, now."

"But they want to be here. They knew what they were getting into, no one forced them to be here, they chose this of their own free will," Joker pointed out. "Besides, I've given them a home, a haven of sorts, a place where they finally belong. No one wants them, not even their own mommies and daddies, but I've given them something they've never had before, acceptance. They love their dear uncle Joker to pieces, because they're freaks like you and me."

"Then don't kill them. Send them home when they're eliminated, you have no reason to kill them for losing."

"True, but that just makes it even funnier!"

"If you won't let them go, then at the very least release Robin. You've tortured him enough with your sadistic game, let him go." Bruce knew any attempts to make the Joker be reasonable were a waste of time, he would have better luck convincing a bird to stop flying, or a fish to stop swimming. But what other choice did he have?

"But Bats, he having so much fun! And he's made so many new friends, although granted most of them want to kill him, but that's beside the point. He's finally with his own kind, kids who are just as unhinged and off-balance as he is. And who knows? He may even win this thing."

"Don't forget Joker, you owe me. I saved your life nineteen years ago, it's time for you to return the favor. Let. Him. Go," he repeated.

Bruce felt a tiny bit of satisfaction when he saw the Joker's face contort with fury. If there was anything the Joker couldn't stand, it was having his neck saved by Batman. He found it funny of course that Batman would save him after everything he had done, but the thought of owing every breath he took to him was maddening. He quickly replaced his furious expression with one of mirth as he said, "You really expect me to pay you back for that? Perhaps you've forgotten who you're talking to. But I'll tell you what, I won't kill him like I did poor Jason. That was his name, right? I'll let little Batman Jr. live, will that make you happy?"

"Why are you doing this Joker?" asked Bruce as his hands shook with anger. "Why would you go to all this trouble just to get an apprentice?"

"You've got one, why can't I? Actually, you've had three, so apparently you didn't choose yours very well," he said with a chuckle. "Believe me, I'd love to lower the shield and invite you to play with us, but I can't have you spoiling everything, you have a very bad habit of doing that, you know. This is all too important and inviting you in prematurely would ruin my plans. I've been working on them for eighteen years now, I can't just let all that hard work go down the crapper. But don't fret, I'll lower the force-field once I've chosen a suitable sidekick, and then we can play forever and ever."

"Let Robin go now, or you will regret it," Batman growled.

"You mean if I don't you'll put me in another body-cast for six months? Ooh, I'm trembling in my spats," said Joker with a taunting grin. "You really need to step up your game Bats. Oh sure, having every bone in my body broken will be an annoying inconvenience, but surely you can do better, it is your kid, after all. Well, I'd love to keep chatting with you, but I have a show to do. Toodles!"

The Joker let out a loud cackle and ended the transmission. Batman pounded his fists on the desk in rage.

What the Joker was doing was something he wasn't used to dealing with: the Joker was doing everything in his power to _not_ be caught. Usually whenever the Joker pulled off some stunt he didn't seem to care enough to take too many precautionary steps to lead the Dark Knight off his trail. That wasn't to say that Bruce wasn't capable of apprehending the Joker when he didn't want to be caught, but it did complicate things. He couldn't understand why the Joker would care so much about having an apprentice or sidekick that he would go to such lengths to keep him from stopping him. He knew the Joker wouldn't want to let his work die with him, he wanted to keep his legacy alive, but it just didn't add up. There had to be some kind of angle, some seemingly insignificant detail he was overlooking, but what? Whenever he wasn't watching the show or forcing himself to take breaks to sleep and eat, he was either out there trying to find a way past the shield or searching for the true answer to why the Joker was doing this in the first place. So far he had made little progress. No one was able to get past the shield, even Superman had tried and somehow couldn't, making Bruce suspect kryptonite had been used in the shield. It was impenetrable, but at least he wouldn't keep it up forever. Eventually he would get bored, whether it was before or after his game ended, but by then it could be too late to save Robin.

Robin. Saving Tim was all he could think about. The boy had been subjected to such horrible treatment already, and he knew it was only going to get worse, he had even been forced to murder one of the others. Bruce knew why he had done it and didn't hold it against him of course, but he knew that Robin must be suffering terribly because of it. He knew Tim must feel wrenching guilt and anguish and would believe he had failed his mentor, because he would feel the same were he in his place.

The Joker had never put him in a situation like that before, where he had absolutely no other choice but to kill. He had tried to get him to kill several times, but he knew Joker would never do to him what he had done to Tim, because in his twisted mind, he would want Bruce to make that choice because he had given up, not because he had no other option. But with Tim, it didn't matter how he forced him to kill, as long as he did it. He felt responsible for Robin's predicament, and how he wished he could take Tim's place.

"Would you look at that!" said Joker some time later as he cut to the feed of a girl dying of an allergy attack on the floor. Robin got down on the floor to try to help her and injected her with an EpiPen, but it was too late. At least he had tried though, everyone else had just stood there and watched her die. "I honestly wasn't expecting anyone to actually die in this challenge, I must have been a very good boy this year!"

It hurt Bruce so much to watch people die and be utterly powerless to stop it, and he knew it must be hurting Robin even more to have to watch it firsthand and not be able to stop it. Fear wasn't an emotion Bruce generally allowed himself to feel, but he couldn't deny he was scared for Tim. It was like when Jason had been killed, except this time the Joker wouldn't settle for just his life. He feared for the boy's life, but also for his sanity. Tim was fighting valiantly, his face a stoic mask determined to hide the anger and fear underneath, but how much longer could he fight? He had strong faith in the boy, but everyone has a limit. He knew what it was like to have to fight the ever-encroaching darkness, but Robin was being pulled down so very deep, to a terrible place where he might never escape.

"Don't stop fighting Tim," he said to himself. "You can beat him, we will beat him, but don't give up. You can do this, I know you can."

Just then, Oracle's face appeared on the screen. "Bruce, are you busy?"

"What's going on?" he asked. His aging body was tiring from all the stress he had been putting it through lately for Robin, but he wasn't about to let that stop him.

"Mother Leela from the orphanage is at the police station with Dad, she wants to speak with Batman, she says it's very important."

"I'm on my way," said Bruce as he made for the Batmobile.

It didn't take him long to get to the police station. He snuck in past the cops and found the elderly nun there waiting for him. He was careful to not startle her as he showed himself.

"Mother Leela," he said.

"Batman," she said nervously. "I didn't hear you come in."

"You have something you need to say?"

"Ye-Yes, yes I do. Normally I wouldn't be calling on the Batman, but I need to tell you something, something I should have told you and the police a long time ago. It's about one of my former orphans, Rosemary Quinn, and I fear I've put everyone in danger by keeping this secret."

"Rosemary Quinn is one of the competitors in the Joker's Circus, the Marionette," stated Batman, his curiosity piqued.

"Yes, which is why I can't keep this secret hidden anymore. I fear the consequences of telling you this, but you need the information I'm about to give you. It won't help you rescue Robin, but I believe it will help you to save our city. All I ask is your protection, for myself, for my sisters, and for my children."

"Of course," promised Batman. "Why don't you sit down, I have a feeling this will take a while," he said as he offered her a seat.

"You have no idea," said Leela as she shook her head.

_**Author's Note:**__ Anyone have any guesses as to what Mother Leela's going to tell Batman? Let's just say he's in for a bit of a shock. I know many of you think you know what's going to happen, but I think you'll be surprised by what's to come. And for those of you who are wondering, the reference to "Death Therapy" comes from the movie __What About Bob?__ If you haven't seen it I highly recommend it, if you have then you get a virtual high-five._


	13. Chapter 13

The next evening, while we were eating dinner, two henchmen began passing out papers to each of us. I examined my paper, which looked like an exam of some kind. The first question asked, _If you were walking in the forest in the middle of a city and were suddenly attacked by a pack of poisonous Narwhals, what would you do?_ It was multiple-choice and the possible answers were _A- Run away like a little girl, B- Go all ninja on them, C- Call a friend for help, or D- Do the Hokey-Pokey._ Needless to say, I was very perplexed by what I was reading.

"What the hell is this?" asked Edward, his expression confused as he looked up from his paper.

"Why, it's your next challenge, of course!" said the Joker as he came through the door, his face grinning like always.

"These questions don't make any sense at all, who wrote this? Five year olds?" asked Sam derisively.

"Of course not. I designed this test," he said simply.

"Were you high when you wrote it?" asked Zelda.

The Joker laughed and answered, "Of course not, what made you think that?"

"What's the point of this test?" I asked him.

"Why, to test you, you silly girl. It may not make sense now, but rest assured I'll explain after you're done." He turned to leave, but spun back around as though he had forgotten something. "Oh, and whoever gets the lowest score gets to spin the Wheel. You know, if they used that tactic in schools, grades would go up significantly. Maybe I should start my own school, what do you think, Rocko? Think I missed my calling?" he asked one of the henchmen.

The guy stiffened and said "I think you'd make a great teacher, boss."

"Would you have me teach your kids if I opened my own school?" he inquired.

The henchman began to sweat as his counterpart took a few steps away from him, as if to hide. "W-Well, my wife don't let me see the kids, but s-sure, I'd let you teach 'em."

The Joker whipped out a gun and without even looking or taking time to aim fired a shot into the man's head, and the loudness of the shot caused Bree to let out a short high pitched scream of surprise.

"I have better things to do than teach your moronic children, Rocko. No doubt they're as block-headed as you, any tutelage of mine would be wasted on the filthy little maggots," he spat at the henchman, whose body lay dead on the floor, bits of blood and brain splattered on the wall behind him. He turned back to us, his angry expression having been replaced with one of amusement. "I'll let you kids get to work, and since he's not doing anything I'll have Rocko stay to make sure none of you try to cheat." The Joker threw back his head and laughed manically as he exited the room.

We abandoned our plates and set to work on our tests. Before I began, I read through the questions. I then peeked at Violet's test to see if they were the same, and saw that our two tests were completely different. I snuck a quick glance at Johnny's paper and saw the questions on his test were also different from mine and Violet's. Their questions made about as much sense as mine did, though.

"Any ideas as to the point of this challenge?" asked Jess-Belle as she glared at her test as though it had offended her.

"The Joker's probably just not in the mood for a challenge today and wants to keep us busy while he does his own thing, whatever that might be," said Sam, irritated.

The conversation ended there as we each began our tests. The Joker hadn't given us a time limit, but I was sure there was one, regardless. Not a single one of the questions made sense in the least, and it dawned on me that that was the point. The Joker wasn't doing this just to give us something to do to keep us busy, he wanted to see how creative we could be with this, just like with the first challenge. The Joker didn't want just anyone, especially not someone without a sense of humor or who lacked creativity, and he would want to get rid of anyone who lacked those skills. After all, a sidekick as serious as the Bat would only serve to taint his comedic legacy, and wouldn't be very fun to play with. I began answering the questions as I believed the Joker would, I tried to get inside his head to give answers that seemed like the kind he would give. It actually wasn't as hard as I thought it would be, and coming up with zany answers was kind of fun, too.

Another one of the questions was, _Your spaceship has broken down in the middle of the desert. You only have a limited supply of red waffles and everyone you meet speaks French, what do you do? _I replied with, _I would find an elephant and give him some of my waffles in exchange for a ride, and I would have The Cat in the Hat tow my spaceship and have him drain the gasoline so I could continue. I would then kill them both and wrap them up in Christmas lights and be on my merry way._ It felt so childish coming up with these answers, but I had to admit it was entertaining.

A little while later the Joker came back and graded our tests. As he read over our answers, his face was expressionless, and I wasn't sure if that was a good thing or a bad thing.

"Well kids, overall I'd say you did an acceptable job, some better than others," he said, and I could have sworn he winked at me, but I might have just imagined it. "I expected better results than this, but given the epidemic of functional fixedness in our society today, I can't complain, much."

"What's functional fixedness?" asked Holly quietly as she tightly held her headless baby-doll.

"The inability to see something in a new and novel way," said Sam as he rolled his eyes. "A rather useless skill, if you ask me."

"Which is probably why you received the lowest score, Ash," said the Joker as his eyes narrowed. "And you know what that means."

"This is an outrage!" shouted Sam. "How were any of us supposed to pass your cockamamie test? Exams are meant to test a person's knowledge on a certain subject, but that test was utterly pointless! Were you just giving us something to do so you wouldn't have to baby-sit us? Was this test designed to keep us busy while you made ha-ha with Harley?"

Sam deserved some kind of medal for that. Not because I agreed with him, but for standing up to the Joker in a way that most people couldn't. Then again, most of his bravery was probably coming from the fact that he was marked for death, and perhaps it hadn't occurred to him that there were plenty of ways for the Joker to torture him to death, and that he was only making things worse for himself. The Joker's face broke into a wide and wicked smile and he said in a calm voice, "My dear boy, but I was testing your skill! To see how well you little piggies can think outside the box. While you technically can get away with having zero creativity skills in my line of work, what's the point if you do the same thing over and over and everyone knows what to expect from you? I'm not a one-trick pony, and I won't have an apprentice that can only think in black and white. You know Ashy, I expected more from a guy who wanted to give people gills so they could breathe underwater, but then again the whole mer-people thing has been done to dust in television, books, and movies. You are a prime example of one of the many problems with society today, you have no vision. Sure, you wanted to splice human DNA with that of animals to make a better human being, but what mad scientist hasn't had that idea? Let's face it, you're an average Joe who just happens to have an above-average IQ and an insatiable curiosity that drives you to do really weird things with human body parts. You're like a mini Hugo Strange, except I think you're somehow even less attractive than he was. Now, without further ado…" the Joker pressed a button on an earpiece that I somehow hadn't noticed earlier and said, "What fate hath the Wheel chosen for our ashy friend, babe?"

His smile widened as she spoke. He then told her to send in two henchmen, who came in record time.

"Boys, hold Ashy in place, would you?"

They both grabbed hold of Sam's arms and restrained him. Sam tried to fight back, but he seemed to have absolutely no muscle at all, and could only squirm helplessly.

"I'd say you're about to live up to your name Ash, but I doubt there will be enough left of you to cremate," he giggled as his hand went up to the flower on his jacket and began squirting Sam with it. Sam screamed in pure agony as the Joker drenched his chest, neck, and face with the corrosive acid, instantly dissolving his clothes and skin, revealing tissue and bone underneath that also quickly began to melt away. Sam's wails were worse than the ones heard in any horror movie, but as the acid melted his flesh and organs he quickly lost the ability to scream, and the henchmen let him fall to his knees. He seemed to die within seconds after the flow started, although it was kind hard to tell, due to the fact that the parts of him that hadn't been hit with the spray were still twitching. I figured if he wasn't dead by the time his face had become a mess of goo, he would be dead soon enough.

The Joker stopped the flow of acid once there wasn't much left of Sam to disintegrate, and then turned back to the camera. "Did you get all that?" he asked the camera guy. "Good, 'cause I want to watch it again later. Well folks, I hope you enjoyed that as much as I did. Let's just hope Ashy doesn't leave a permanent stain on the floor, liquefied skin and organs really clash with the wallpaper in here. Anyhoo, tune in next time for another hilarious episode to watch me meddle with the kids some more!"

xxxx

Later that evening, I was getting ready to go to bed. I passed by Holly on my way to my bunk, and saw her nervously rocking her still-headless baby doll and singing quietly in a trembling voice, _Baa, Baa, Black Sheep. _When I had almost reached my bed,someone knocked on the door to our dorm.

"That's weird, no one who's ever come through that door has had the decency to knock first," said Zelda from her bunk.

"Maybe it's my sweet Robin, come to see me!" said Bree excitedly. "Someone get the door!"

"WHO IS IT!" Zelda shouted at the door.

"That's not what I meant!" said Bree.

The door swung open, revealing Edward.

"You're not Robin!" said Bree angrily as she threw her pillow at Edward's head, like it was somehow his fault that Robin had absolutely no interest in her whatsoever.

"Thank God for that," he said. "Rose, would you like to go on a walk with me?"

His question was met with a resounding "Oooooh!" from the other girls.

"What is this, third grade?" I asked as I rolled my eyes.

"You should see if you can find Drake and Elise, you could have a foursome!" said Zelda.

"That's real classy, Zel," I told her.

"Just tellin' it like it is," she said with a shrug.

I quickly popped my pills in my mouth and went to join Edward at his side. He took me by the hand and led me down the hall.

"You want to go outside? It's nice out there tonight," I said.

"Nah, it's freezing out there. Let's just find a room where we can be alone, preferably one without Drake and Elise. As tempting as a foursome is…"

"Yeah, I gotcha."

It wasn't very difficult to find an empty room. I had explored nearly every room in the house, and each one had some kind of treasure inside. Granted, most of the "treasures" found inside these rooms had absolutely no value, but some did, like the room filled with musical instruments, which was where Edward took me.

I had been in the music room before, but only once and not for very long because I couldn't play any instruments. The room was filled with every musical instrument I had ever heard of, and some that I hadn't.

"Why'd you bring me here?" I asked him.

"This is as good a room as any. Besides, I like this room. I have some talent with music, you know."

"Prove it. Play me something, on anything."

I think he had been waiting for me to ask him to play. The right corner of his mouth turned up in a half-smile as he picked up a violin and began to play. Now, I had heard the violin before, but the way he played it, it was different somehow. It was beautiful really, the way he strung every note together to make such a sweet melody. It started slow, but the tempo increased greatly in speed in the middle, then slowed down again for the finale.

"Bravo," I said with a smile after he had finished.

"You really liked that?" he asked.

"Of course I did. But what I'm wondering is, with talent like that, why are you a hitman and not a musician?"

"Just because I have a talent doesn't necessarily mean I want to only do that one thing. I like music on the side, but I like being a hitman more."

"Your dad must love that."

"I've never cared too much about what he thinks. What I care about is you."

He drew nearer to me, so that we were only an inch apart. I gazed up into his stormy gray eyes, studying them. Without even really thinking about it, I began to close the distance between us. I wasn't exactly sure why, but in that moment I wanted him very badly. I softly pressed my lips against his, savoring the feeling of my first kiss. It was a strange feeling, being desired by someone, a feeling that was foreign to me. It felt weird, but not unwelcome. The way my mind worked, there were always about a million different thoughts competing for my attention at all times. Over the years I had learned to ignore all those thoughts and focus on one at a time, I worked to keep up walls to block out unimportant thoughts so that I could concentrate and think clearly. But in that moment, I felt those walls come down, allowing all those thoughts to swarm inside my head. For the first time though, I didn't mind. Most of my thoughts were about Edward, the taste of his lips, the feel of his hands on my body, the fact that I was becoming more intimate with him than I thought I ever could with anyone. It was disorienting, it was like a rush, a high that I couldn't get enough of. I felt him pulling up my dress as he began kissing me faster and with more intensity as I undid his belt buckle. I was almost afraid of what was coming, but excited too. I was overcome with desire, I had lost all control of myself.

Just as he had gotten my dress off of me and I had undone the fly of his pants, the door to the music room suddenly burst wide open, bathing us in bright light. I couldn't help but scream in embarrassment when I saw who it was: the Joker. Of all the people who could have walked in on us, it just had to be the Joker.

"I see I'm not the only one in a musical mood tonight!" he said as he strutted into the room. I ripped my dress out of Edward's hands and tried to cover myself with it as best I could, at least I still had on underwear. Edward also zipped up his pants and buckled his belt very quickly, but instead of looking embarrassed he seemed angry.

"Am I interrupting something?" asked the Joker with mock surprise.

"W-We weren't doing anything," I said lamely. It was the only thing I could think to say.

The Joker searched through the instruments nonchalantly until he came up with a ukulele. "Aha! There it is. I just feel like making music tonight, don't you?" The Joker came near us, acting oblivious to what he had caught us doing. He put a hand to his flower as he said, "I'd be careful, never know what'll get recorded and put on the air."

"Are you saying there's a camera in here?" I asked as I frantically scanned the room with my eyes looking for it, and there the thing was on the wall, recording our dirty actions.

"Why would you put a camera in here?" Edward demanded.

"Why not put a camera in here? I have hundreds set up everywhere in here and in the city, even in the closets, never know what you might catch." As he said this, he gently squeezed his flower, spraying Edward's face and jacket with acid. Edward yelped and ripped the jacket off, but there was nothing he could do about the drops that had already sunk into his skin and scalded him. I could tell that he hadn't gotten enough on him to cause any serious damage, but it had to really hurt.

"Whoops! Sorry about that, Shadow!" he said with an amused grin.

"You did that on purpose!" said Edward angrily.

"Did not. Why would I do such a thing?" asked Joker, as if offended anyone would think such a thing of him. "Well, I'll be off now, you two have a good night." His face and tone were friendly, but I thought I saw something flash in his eyes. He took his ukulele and strummed it as he made to exit the room, but paused to say, "Don't do anything I wouldn't do!" I could hear him laughing at his own joke as he shut the door.

"Now, where were we before we were so rudely interrupted?" said Edward as he tried to kiss me again, but I pulled back.

"What's wrong Rose?" he asked.

"I can't do this. It isn't right," I said as I worked to put my walls back up, which was difficult because the thoughts storming my brain didn't want to be ignored. My head throbbed a bit from the effort.

"What about it isn't right?" he demanded.

"For one thing, we're being recorded. What's to stop the Joker from recording us and using it in the next episode?"

"He could do that with Drake and Elise anytime, he doesn't need us," argued Edward. "I'll disable the camera, okay?"

"But it's not just that. I like you, but I don't I won't to go there with you, not yet, maybe not ever."

"Is this because the Joker killed the moment? Rose, baby, don't let that freak ruin this for us. You wanted to do it a few minutes ago, why not now?"

"I wasn't thinking, I got caught up in the moment. I wasn't in control of myself and I'm sorry, I'm sorry I led you on like that, but I can't do this."

"Can't or won't?"

"Won't."

"Rose, this may be our only chance to do this, either one of us could die at any time. Only one person can get out of here alive, this is our only chance."

"I don't want to do it because I might die. When I do it, I want it to be because I trust that person enough to give them myself, not because my life could be over in a matter of days or even hours."

"But you may never have another chance. It sounds like you've never done it with anyone, do you really want to die a virgin?"

"It sounds to me that what you're trying to say is since I'll probably die I should sleep with someone so that my life is complete. You're saying that life without sex is awful and I need it to be happy, correct? If I really need sex to be happy, then this life is even more pointless than I thought. Is that why you want to have sex, because you could die and you want to get some action one last time? If that's the case, why don't you go find some other girl?" I asked as I felt my anger rise.

"It's not about that, you're taking my words and twisting them. I really like you, okay? I think I may even love you," he said as he grabbed my wrists and pulled me back to him.

"You have a funny way of showing it," I shot back as I wrenched my wrists out of his hands. "If love really did exist, the "true" kind that everyone so desperately desires, people wouldn't have to have sex to prove their feelings for one another."

"What would you know about love? I read your file at Arkham, you're a psychopath! Psychopaths don't feel anything, much less love," said Edward, irritated.

"You're right, I don't know anything about love, much less if I'm even capable of it, which is all the more reason for us to not do it." I turned and walked away, furious at him for having read my file, even though I had done the same to others. I liked him, I really did, but I was not about to let him force me into something like that. I might have been a murdering psychopath, but even I had standards. Edward had made me feel things that I had never experienced before, emotions that, while pleasant, I wasn't sure if I wanted to feel. I didn't believe in love in any form and I didn't hinge my happiness on finding my "better half." But Edward had awakened feelings inside of me that I didn't want to face yet, if ever.

That night I couldn't sleep, and not for the usual reasons. I couldn't stop thinking about Edward and how he had made me feel, I couldn't stop trying to figure out what those feelings were exactly. Even though they felt good they were very annoying and distracting and I really wanted to sleep. I both enjoyed and loathed the feelings he had awakened in me, curse him for it.


	14. Chapter 14

_**Author's Note:**__ One of my characters was inspired by a certain version of a certain song. This character was also partially inspired by a character in Girl Interrupted, but this song is what mainly inspired the character. Once you see the name of the song you'll know which character it is. If you'd like to hear it, when you get to the line marked with an asterisk, go to youtube and put in this link /watch?v=jRXQsQKGqIU  
>Don't start the song until you get to that part, as it'll help set the proper ambiance for the scene. Enjoy<em>

* * *

><p>A full three days passed, and as time went by, I saw a bit of a change in the others. Nine of us were dead, leaving eleven left to compete. This was good for those of us that remained, but at the same time there was some grieving going on, even though most of us weren't on very friendly terms. Even I felt a little something, if only because living with people for an extended period and seeing them, talking to them, putting up with them every day tends to leave a mark, however small and easily forgotten it may be. If anyone hadn't been taking this thing seriously before, they sure as hell were now.<p>

Edward and I stopped speaking to each other. I was able to put away the annoying feelings in my chest for the most part and hardly even thought of him anymore. Every once in a while I'd catch him looking at me and he would scowl and turn away quickly. He seemed to be taking our breakup harder than I was. I kind of felt bad for rejecting him like I had, it had been kind of harsh, but I wasn't about to back down now. I had some dignity, after all.

"Attention all apprentice-wannabes, report outside for your next challenge on the double!" ordered Joker over the intercom.

I had been in the gym for most of the day. The others usually used the gym to exercise or play sports, but I preferred gymnastics. I had never been taught how to do gymnastics, but I had a pretty good idea of how they were done from watching others, and I was a fast learner. I was really bored, and so I didn't really care if I was doing them right or not. I hopped off the balance beam and left the gym to begin my trek back to the front door. I managed to get there without getting lost, which was more than a lot of the remaining players could say when they journeyed through the seemingly endless madhouse.

Most of the others were already there, and the rest were right behind me. Outside, it was raining cats and dogs and the wind howled loudly. Thunder roared and a bolt of lightning struck the ground not too far off in the distance. Great day for a challenge.

"Hi Robby-kins!" said Bree as she threw her arms around Robin's waist and latched herself onto him. "Didja miss me? I know I missed you."

Robin sighed and attempted to gently extricate himself from her grip. When she noticed he was pulling away, her eyes filled with rage, and her hands made a strangling motion. She stopped, however, when she saw the Joker and Harley waiting for us.

They were already out there protected from the rain by umbrellas. The camera guy was also out there, and had been equipped with a waterproof camera but had no protection for himself. When he saw us he turned on the camera and pointed it at the Joker, who immediately began introducing the episode.

"Hey there all you couch potatoes, and welcome to another episode of the Joker's Circus!" He turned slightly so that he was talking to us and to the audience. "Today's challenge is one of endurance, and will have three parts. For now all you need to know is that part one is an obstacle course, and it's right over there!"

The Joker pointed over his shoulder, and through the rain I saw a bunch of junk that I supposed could be an obstacle course. It began with a climbing wall about fifteen feet high, and after that I could just barely make out what looked like two giant swinging axes. I couldn't make out any more details through the rain, but knowing the Joker the rest of this course was going to be deadly.

"You'll go through the course repeatedly until a certain amount of you either give up or pass out. Then we'll move on to part two," said Joker.

"How many people need to drop out for the first challenge to end, exactly?" asked Jess-Belle with her hands on her hips.

"Depends. I'll just keep letting people wimp out until I decide we've lost enough," he said with a devilish grin. "The sooner we get started the sooner we can move on to part two, so GO!" he said as he fired a bullet, not into the air, but into the neck of a henchman who had been in the wrong place at the wrong time.

I took off, as did everyone else, and began climbing the wall. It took me almost ten minutes to do, mainly because the handholds were slippery and I had trouble getting a good grip. I eventually made it to the top and climbed down, letting go when I only had a few feet to go. Holly was ahead of me, as was Johnny. The rest were behind me but right on my tail.

The axes were only a few feet ahead, swinging dangerously close to the ground. Even though we were in the city and on pavement, there was some kind of sludge on the path, making it very slippery. I reached the axes and got down on my hands and knees, getting mud all over myself in the process. The axes came very close to carving me like a turkey a few times, but I was able to stay down and was soon past them.

Next came a large pit, it was so deep that I couldn't see the bottom. Above it were several ropes hanging down. I grabbed one, took a step back, and swung across the pit, just barely making it to the other side.

The next obstacle in my path was barbed wire about two feet off the ground. I had to get back down on my hands and knees, and I had to crawl even lower than before, practically inhaling the mud. As I went under it my dress snagged a few times and I probably tore it in a few places but other than that I was able to free myself easily enough.

The next part of the course had more mud, but with several stones placed throughout that were barely big enough to stand on with one foot. I leapt onto the stone closest to me and then the one after that. I had a pretty good idea of what would happen if I touched the ground, which was confirmed when a large rat ran out of a gutter and into the mud on the opposite end of the course. A minor explosion went off and it was bye-bye rat. I leapt across the rest of the stones and made it to the other side.

The course took a u-turn and the next obstacle was a ring of fire I would have to jump through. How it managed to keep burning in this weather was beyond me. I stopped to catch my breath and to prepare myself to jump, knowing that if I screwed this up I could possibly be setting my whole body on fire, and after my last burn I had no wish to go through that again.

Before I could make the leap, Zelda ran past me and, after just a split-second of consideration, leapt through the hoop and kept running. I took a step back and did the same, and made it through without a hitch.

The last part of the course was the Joker and Harley's pet hyenas chained to a post. The path was narrow and their chains were long, and so I had to move very fast to avoid their sharp teeth. The way they snapped at me, they probably hadn't been fed lately. I got past them, and found myself back at the beginning. I sighed and started over again.

I did the course three more times, and still no one dropped out. How many times would I have to do it? I was becoming tired and frustrated, I started moving a bit slower to conserve my energy, because there would be no winning this part of the challenge, only not-losing.

On my fifth lap Elise twisted her ankle, and Drake stopped to help her up at out of the mud and to stay with her (he was probably just using her as an excuse to quit without looking like a weakling). Now that people were quitting, it wouldn't be much longer before the Joker ended the challenge.

On my seventh run through the course, I was crawling under the barbed wire, and Edward was ahead of me leaping across the minefield. When he was halfway across, a bolt of lightning struck the ground near him, creating a domino effect, triggering all the hidden bombs one by one. Edward gave up leaping across the stones and tried to make a run for it, but he wasn't nearly fast enough to escape and was blown back by the explosions around him. He landed on the ground hard, and didn't move.

"You okay Ed?" I asked him as I cleared the barbed wire and ran to him. His temple was bleeding, he groaned and opened his eyes and looked up at me.

"I'm fine, keep going!" he groaned, and I didn't hesitate.

On my eleventh lap Zelda jumped through the flaming hoop and accidentally brushed the side, catching her dress on fire. The rain quickly put it out, but it distracted her and she got too close to the hyenas, and they wasted no time in getting their jaws on her. They both each got a good bite in, one just below her right knee and the other just above her left breast. She yelled, more in anger than in pain, and got away from them as fast as she could. She tried to keep going, but fell back in the mud on her face.

"Stupid mutts, I'll turn you both into a coat and matching hat!" she spat at them.

A shrill whistle blew, and the Joker called out, "That'll be enough kids! Come on back inside before you all get pneumonia. Losers go shower, everyone else follow me!"

"Finally," I muttered to myself as I followed him back in. It was a wonder anyone could tell us apart anymore, because we were all completely covered in mud.

The Joker and Harley led us down a hallway and into a room I thought I had already explored but couldn't have, because this room was unlike anything I had ever seen. There was a lot of strange tech, and the walls, ceiling and floor appeared to be giant computer screens.

"This room is a virtual reality chamber. For part two you'll have to navigate your way through a virtual reality challenge, sort of like a video game. To pass on to part three all you have to do is make it to the finish line. You'll be wearing these helmets, and if you take them off before you complete the challenge you will be immediately disqualified," said Joker as Harley began passing out chrome helmets with goggles attached, and put one on to show us how to do it right, but had trouble getting it over her jester cowl.

I had to undo my pigtails to get the helmet on, but even then it was still a little small. I adjusted the goggles, which made everything look distorted and only let me see in red and green.

"Brace yourselves!" laughed the Joker as he flipped a switch, and instantly I was no longer in the Joker's house, but in a lush, green forest. My clothes were clean, as if I hadn't been rolling around in the mud. The sun beat down mercilessly, yet I felt cold too, as if it were snowing. It was a feeling I couldn't really describe; the best thing I could compare it too would be a fever: you're burning up yet you feel like someone locked you in a freezer.

Around me were the others, also taking in our surroundings. I had never been out of the city before, and they had probably never set foot in a forest, either. It was kind of surreal to be surrounded by so many plants and trees, and to not hear car horns or smell the fumes. It was quiet except for the sounds of animals, and the air was clean and fresh, and I hated it. Maybe it was homesickness or something, but the city was where I belonged. Before me was a narrow trail which I assumed led to the finish line, and I took off, as did everyone else. They all had their own separate trails, so we would be going alone, which was how I liked it.

I followed the trail for a while, wiping sweat from my brow while my teeth chattered. I was making good time, until I came to a fork in the road. I took the left path and kept going.

I slowed to a jog as it suddenly began to hail. The hailstones weren't very big, but still hurt when they hit. I covered my head with my hands and kept going, and after about twenty minutes the hail stopped just as suddenly as it had come. I came to a small pool of water that was waist-deep next and waded across it. I came across a bear at some point, and had to remind myself that it wasn't real and didn't pose a threat. It was easy to forget this was all virtual reality, and that the Joker was controlling everything that happened in here. I was kind of disappointed, because fighting a bear would be more fun than a barrel of monkeys. I had the option of provoking it anyway, but without the risk of death it would be pointless. Not to mention the fact that I did have a challenge to win.

As I walked past the sleeping bear, I heard a loud, piercing scream**.** Out of sheer curiosity, I ran through the trees towards the sound. It was probably just someone freaked out by a snake or something and had forgotten we were in make-believe land.

*****When I reached the source of the scream, I couldn't believe my eyes. Bree lay dead on the path in a pool of her own blood. She had obviously been murdered, but there was no one else around. How could this have happened? People couldn't actually die in virtual worlds because they weren't real, but had the Joker somehow made it so that we could die? I knew the clown was a genius, but surely that was impossible, yet I couldn't deny the evidence before me. I began to wonder if maybe I should have taken that bear more seriously. I took a step towards her, and without any warning felt myself being attacked, but I could see no one. I could feel someone on my back, and I felt my face being clawed by invisible nails. I reached back to try to throw my attacker off of me, but there was nothing there to grab. I suddenly realized what was going on, and removed my helmet. I was instantly brought back to the real world and I could now see my attacker, but I had to do a double take because it was unbelievable. Holly knocked me to the floor, her knife raised in the air, ready to strike. I was shocked, Holly had killed Bree? Sweet, childlike little Holly, who was afraid of her own shadow, had murdered her best friend? I hadn't known she was even capable of murder, much less when it was pretty much the only person who cared about her.

What made it even weirder was the song she was singing. She was singing the creepiest version of _Twinkle Twinkle Little Star_ I had ever heard. It sounded so wrong and haunted, it sounded like the voice of a phantom, or of a fallen angel. It was then that I realized what Jess-Belle had meant when she had said she only sang that song on special occasions. I tried to fight her off, but she had caught me completely off guard. She must have taken off her helmet and killed Bree, and then she had come after me. She probably would have killed us all, and what better time to do it, when our guards were down even more so than when we were asleep. Joker wanted us to die one at a time to drag this out as long as possible, but it was clear she didn't care about that in the slightest. I could tell by the look in her eyes that gone was the unstable Holly I thought I had known, replaced by a maniac that thirsted for bloodshed. Her eyes were rabid and her teeth were bared, and her white blonde hair looked like it had just been through a hurricane. Her movements were jerky and uncoordinated, but she was stronger than she looked; her pencil thin arms shouldn't have been able to overpower me, but the element of surprise had given her a huge advantage. I grabbed her arm to try to keep her from stabbing me, and as she fought me she continued singing that song but at a faster, crazier pace. As I groped for my own knife she let out a wail like a banshee and slit my throat. I immediately felt hot blood pour down my neck, and I clutched at my throat in a futile attempt to stop the bleeding. She let go of me and faced me as she raised her knife in the air to strike again, when out of nowhere Robin threw himself on her and pulled her away from me. Even more surprising was the appearance of Violet at my side. She pulled out her knife and a lighter and began heating up the knife. Miraculously, Holly hadn't severed any arteries, but if my bleeding wasn't stopped soon it wouldn't matter. Of course Joker and Harley were nowhere to be found, and even if they were there they would only point and laugh as I choked on my own blood.

Breathing was becoming difficult, and my vision was growing fuzzy. I felt my strength being drained from my body as blood soaked nearly every inch of me. I gasped for air and felt myself convulsing uncontrollably. The world seemed to spin around me as pain pulsed through me. Violet finished heating the knife, which probably wasn't as hot as it needed to be but was the best she could do with the amount of time given us. Knowing what I was in for, I bit down on my hand to keep myself from crying out. She forcefully shoved the searing hot metal against my throat, and I screamed anyway.

**~Robin's POV~**

I tackled Holly to the floor and grabbed her hands to try to wrestle the weapon from her grasp, but she was not about to give up without a fight. She kept trying to stab me over and over, all the while doing a rendition of Twinkle Twinkle that would haunt my nightmares for a long time. I looked into her usually innocent eyes, seeing nothing but evil and darkness there.

I couldn't hold her down on the floor without her stabbing me, so I pinned her arms around her back and tried to take the knife from her, but couldn't without giving her an opening to attack or escape. She kicked and tried to wriggle free so I also wrapped my legs around hers, becoming a sort of human straightjacket. She kept trying to free herself, but gradually I could feel her tiring. Her song became a soft humming that was still disturbing but was a lot better than the singing.

I held her there until she eventually calmed down and started humming a different song. She let me take her knife and I slowly released her.

"Bree was your friend," I said to her, unable to stop myself. "She was your best friend and you murdered her. How could you do that to her? What is wrong with you?"

"Shhh…" she said as she raised a finger to her lips. She pointed to Bree's bloody corpse as she whispered, "Bree's sleeping now, I don't want you to wake her up. She's sleeping, forever!" she giggled insanely. She picked herself up and said to Bree, "Baby and I will miss you." She rocked her baby doll in her arms whilst whistling _Rock a Bye Baby_, her need to kill apparently sated, for the moment.

I was amazed by what I had just witnessed. I had dealt with many people who killed simply for the fun of it, but that didn't mean I ever really got used to it. Even worse was the fact that Bree had trusted Holly, had been a friend to her, but that hadn't mattered at all in the end.

Because I had taken off my helmet it meant I was disqualified, and I could only hope Joker wouldn't use that as an excuse to hurt anyone. Violet was sitting with Rose, and I couldn't tell if she was alive or not. I went over to them, and saw that Rose's chest was still falling and rising, which meant she was still alive, but only just. She needed medical attention, but I had a feeling that she was on her own here. I wanted to help her, but there was nothing I could do, which frustrated me all the more.

Violet gazed at me with those deep violet eyes of hers, the way she looked at me, it was as if she was studying me. She looked like she wanted to tell me something, but was unable to. She held out her hand and brought it towards me, but seemed to think better of it and quickly pulled it away. Looking at her, I noticed something familiar about those eyes, but I couldn't put my finger on it. She was certainly strange, but unlike most of the others, her strangeness wasn't a bad thing.

Over the span of half an hour the others completed the challenge. The Joker and Harley came back and directed them to the winner's circle.

"Well Chuckles, even though you did take off your helmet which I'm pretty sure I said was a no-no, being the forgiving soul that I am I'll let you keep playing. Starry, you too. Go join the finalist's circle with your little friends," said Joker with a broad grin on his face.

He pointed to where Johnny and Jess-Belle were standing, and I obeyed and went to stand with them, and Holly followed suit. Her clothes were soaked in Bree's and Rose's blood, but that didn't seem to bother her very much.

"Time for part three of the challenge, if you'll all follow me," he said as he opened the door as Harley eagerly skipped to his side.

"What about Rose?" I asked.

The Joker and Harley cast a quick glance over at Rose and shrugged. "She seems fine to me," they both said in unison.

"Of course," I said through my teeth as I followed them.

They led us to the gym, where there hung four ropes. Closer inspection revealed they were made of barbed wire.

"For your last challenge, all you have to do is climb your rope to the top and then stay there longer than everyone else. It's very simple really, and Harley has volunteered to serve as cheerleader!"

"There is no way I'm climbing barbed wire," said Jess-Belle. "Bree's dead so there won't be an elimination ceremony, so what's the point of even having this challenge?"

"Well, I guess if you don't want to do the challenge you don't have to," said Joker, sounding like his feelings had been hurt. "You can tell your teammates that you almost won but chickened out at the last minute like babies, I'm sure they'll understand. I mean, who am I to expect my little trainees to step out of their comfort zones and suffer a teensy weensy bit of pain? You do whatever makes you feel comfortable, lord knows we wouldn't want anyone to get a boo-boo."

"There's no way I'm going back there without at least trying. I have a reputation to uphold and exaggerate after all," said Johnny as he took hold of one of the ropes. He hoisted himself up and began to climb, wincing as he did.

The Joker gave me a look that clearly said that I had best start climbing, even though he made it seem like I had a choice in the matter. I took a deep breath, chose a rope, and began to climb. There were tiny spaces in between each spike and so I put my hands on them, but I couldn't avoid the spikes entirely. The barbs didn't scratch very deeply and didn't draw much blood, but they _really_ hurt. They got my arms and legs, and they stuck me in a much more private place, too.

"Come on you guys, you can do it!" cheered Harley as she waved around red and black pom-poms and jumped up and down. "Jester! Little Star! Chuckles! We have pep, yes we do! We have pep, how about you? Go team go!"

"Can't you cheer any better than that?" asked Joker disgustedly.

"Sorry Puddin', that's all I know," she said sheepishly.

My hands were sweaty and I was having trouble holding on, and I was exhausted too, but I made myself keep going. When I was about halfway there, I paused for a moment to catch my breath and looked down. Fortunately I had no problem with heights. I could see Jess-Belle on the ground with a pouting expression on her face, and I saw Johnny a little ways below me. Holly was higher than us both, it was as if she couldn't feel the barbs at all. I started climbing again and was almost there when-

"And Little Star wins the challenge!" announced Joker.

I began climbing back down quickly, and in my haste stuck myself with more barbs, but I ignored the stinging pain. I reached the bottom and checked myself out and saw that my arms and legs were covered in scratches and my costume was torn in several places.

"Congratulations, Starshine," said Joker with a wide smile. "If we were still holding an elimination ceremony you'd have won invincibility for your entire team." He turned back to the ever-present camera guy and said, "Well there you have it, folks. Who knew Star-Bright had it in her? Tune in next time to see even more depraved psycho action!"

I left the gym and found Violet helping Rose back to the girl's dorm. Rose could walk, but she was still very weak, so I picked her up and carried her to her room. Her neck was burned badly and would scar horribly, but it was no longer bleeding, at least.

"Trying to play the hero again, Robin?" she asked me weakly with a half-smile. A smile I couldn't return.

"Shut up and be grateful for once," I told her, which only made her smile more.

I laid her on her bed and left her alone to go to my own room. My stomach growled, but after what I had seen today I had no appetite, which bothered me. It wasn't like I hadn't seen this stuff before, so why was it getting to me? I knew why, it was because I was powerless to stop it. At least with Bruce, I saw the evil and corruption but could fight to bring it to an end. But here, I could do nothing, and it was driving me crazy.

**~Rose's POV~**

"Wow, Holly got you good, didn't she?" said Zelda.

"Did you know she was like that?" I asked her. My throat was extremely sore, and it made talking difficult. "Why would she do that all of a sudden? It wasn't like her at all."

"The thing with Holly is she's always like that. She's got the mind of a child but the heart of a killer," said Zelda listlessly from her bed. Holly was in the room, but didn't seem to care that we were talking about her. She was taking care of her headless baby doll and humming to herself, as always. "When she was first brought to the asylum who know how many years ago her doctor thought she had a split personality, but that's not the case. She loves killing people, but most of the time she doesn't feel the need to actually do it. Occasionally something sets her off or she just feels like killing and goes on murdering rampages until she gets over it. You're lucky to be alive, you wouldn't believe how many people she's killed, more than a lot of the people here. Even more than me, which is a shame. The only people I've killed are my step-mother, a few cellmates, a guard or two, my ex, a handful of civilians and some of the Joker's goons, and my step-mother's cat. I may be forgetting some people, but I think that's it, and so I really need to step up my game. I want to set a record before I die."

"Why'd you kill your step-mother?" I asked curiously.

"She was poisoning my dad so she could get his money, I told him that over and over and he wouldn't listen. I killed that awful witch and her cat for good measure by putting them in her car and driving it into a pool while they slept. After my dad found out what I'd done he called me a sociopath and had me committed," she said indifferently, as though she were talking about someone else, and not herself. "It was just as well that he did, because the crime, coupled with his ingratitude, made me discover how much I like living on the other side of the law. I also killed my first doctor, who was also Vie's doc at the time. You remember Dr. Wise, don't you Mime?"

Violet was sitting on her bed with her arms wrapped around her knees, staring blankly at the wall before her and said nothing. She didn't respond in the slightest, and it was at times like these that I wondered what was going on inside that head of hers, if anything. I couldn't believe she had forfeited the challenge just to save my life, and I had no idea why she had done it. She probably expected a favor in return, but I wondered what it was.


	15. Chapter 15

"I've had enough of this nonsense! Mistah J, I'm tired of waiting, why won't you do this one thing for me?"

"Harley, you are less patient than a hundred two year olds combined!"

"I've been patient for over seventeen years!"

Joker and Harley had been talking about something in the kitchen while we were having breakfast, and their little chat had exploded into screaming and name calling. It was only a matter of time before they started throwing things at each other.

"And you can't be patient a little while longer? You're pathetic," said Joker acidly.

"This is important to me, can't you understand why I can't wait any longer? Would it really be so bad? I swear I wouldn't do any harm, I need this, all this waiting is driving me loony!"

"I'm not about to dump eighteen years of planning down the drain for the likes of you, I don't care how much you cry and gripe and whine. Keep it up and you'll earn yourself a one-way trip out of here!"

"How dare you! You can't banish me, this involves both of us. I've had it with you! Why, if it weren't for the you-know-what, I wouldn't even bother staying!"

"Don't you get cheeky with me, little girl. I can and will kick you out if you keep complaining!" he yelled at her. "You are the most irritating wench I've ever had the misfortune of meeting! And that's saying something. Why I didn't kill you a long time ago is beyond me!"

Harley gasped and picked up a frying pan and threw it at his head. He dodged it and it missed him by half an inch. The look of fury on his face mirrored hers as he reached into his jacket and pulled out several knives and began hurling them at her one by one. She neatly dodged all of them as they exchanged insults.

"Ignorant blonde!"

"Unfunny clown-wannabe!"

"Obnoxious harpy!"

"Cheesy ham!"

"Insufferable brat!"

"Pasty-faced creep!"

"Tawdry floozy!"

"Would you just listen to me for once!" Harley screeched once he had run out of knives. "Do you have any idea what you've put me through for almost eighteen years now? I have every right to do this, so why won't you let me?"

"We've been over this a million times, but apparently everything I say goes in one ear and out the other!" he said as he smacked her, knocking her into the wall. She surprised everyone, including Joker and possibly even herself, when she retaliated by kicking him in the groin, hard. He let out a high-pitched cry of pain and winced as he grabbed her by her hair and knocked her head against the counter. He had been about to keep up the assault when she escaped his grasp and shoved him away.

"Stop!" she ordered. "I know how we can settle this."

Joker looked like he really wanted to continue beating her, but stopped out of curiosity. "And what would that be, exactly?" he asked condescendingly.

She left the kitchen and stood by the Dogs. "I'm going to lead the Dogs in today's challenge, and you're going to lead the Freaks. If we win, you grant my request, today."

"What do you want from him? What is this fight about, exactly?" asked Johnny.

"None of your business kid, this is between me and Mistah J," she snapped.

The Joker smiled a wide, devious smile and said, "And if I win, you stop pestering me and leave Arkham City so that maybe I can finally have a moment's peace, and I'll never grant you your wish, even after the game is finished."

Harley smiled darkly and said, "You're on."

She then had the Dogs follow her out of the mess hall, and as they were leaving I heard her tell them, "Ya know, I'm startin' to think Mistah J isn't the guy for me after all. Crazy, right?"

"Women," Joker muttered. He then switched from angry to excited as he said, "Well children, what do you think of me joining your team for the day? I'm sure we'll have loads of unspeakable fun!"

"What's today's challenge?" asked Robin.

"A good friendly game of capture the flag, m'boy. All we have to do is capture the Dogs flag first and I'll finally be free of the old ball and chain. Plus Harley will be devastated when she doesn't get her wish granted, I'm really looking forward to that. It shouldn't be hard to win this one, after all, we do have the numbers advantage. Don't let me down, Freaks, I'm counting on you, I want to see your all out there. Don't make me have to give you "incentive" to win, wouldn't want to lose any more teammates just yet. All right team, let's show those mutts what freaks can do!"

He darted through the door, laughing all the way, and we ran after him and followed him outside. The sky was overcast but the air was warm, much better weather to hold challenges in than the weather we'd had in our last challenge.

For the past few days I had been doing as little talking as possible while the wound in my neck attempted to heal. The soreness in my throat was very irritating, and I hoped it wouldn't be too much of a distraction during the challenge.

Harley and the Dogs were nowhere to be found, so they were probably already at their base. The cameraman focused his camera on the Joker. After he opened the episode he explained the challenge and how he and Harley would be participating, though he left out the fight and made it sound as if they were doing it just for kicks. After he had finished, Joker had us follow him into the Monarch Theater.

"This is our homebase," he said. He motioned to a flag with his face painted on it. "Once you steal their flag and get it back here an alarm will sound. Harley and the Dogs are in the courthouse, which isn't very far from here. Not counting Harl and me, there are six of you and four of them, which means they won't have as much protection or fighters. Eris, Chuckles, and Marionette will accompany me to steal their flag while the rest of you will stay and protect ours."

"Excuse me?" said Edward, miffed. "You're taking the Boy Blunder instead of me? I thought you wanted to win this."

"Hm, let me see, kid trained by hitman or kid trained by Batman?" Joker held out both his hands, as if literally weighing his options and then said, "It's close, but kid trained by Bats wins. What, guarding a flag too hard for you?"

"You'll regret this," grumbled Edward.

"Trust me, if I don't regret how it went down with Grandma I don't see how I'll regret not picking you," he said with a laugh. "Now you all know what to do, any questions?"

"What's the you-know-what Harley was talking about?" asked Elise.

"It's to make you ask questions," he retorted. "Now let's get this show on the road!"

The Joker held an air horn above his head and blasted it into a megaphone, causing all of us to cover our ears. Robin, Zelda and I then followed Joker outside the theater. He took such long strides I practically had to jog to keep up. He slowed, however, when we saw Harley, Jess-Belle, and Drake coming our way. He ducked into an alley to avoid detection and had us do the same.

"Why are we hiding?" asked Zelda. "We have the advantage, so why aren't we facing them with knives ablaze?"

"Numbers don't guarantee victory, m'dear," said Joker as he rolled his eyes. "For instance, you could pit a hundred soldiers against one Superman and he could win with his eyes closed and both arms tied behind his back. You've got to have a strategy of some kind for these things. Normally I would be going in there knife ablaze, but with stakes like these, I have to take _some_ precautions. We'll fight them eventually, but our priority has to be getting that flag."

"You really want to win, don't you?" said Robin facetiously.

"Harley's fun and all, but every once in a while a guy needs a break. I assume that's why Batsy's always locking away Catwoman," he chuckled.

The Joker waited a few more seconds, then began to lead us stealthily towards the courthouse. Once it was in sight, and once we could no longer see Harley and her team, we quickened our pace.

"This is too easy, I almost feel sorry for Harley. Oh well, this'll teach her to not gamble with things she's not prepared to lose," said Joker once we had reached the front door to the courthouse. We slowly crept inside, careful to not alert the guard Dogs to our presence.

The inside of the courthouse didn't look any different from what I had expected, although it was dirtier and dustier than I thought it would be.

In the center of the room were Johnny and Holly, both holding their knives and looking bored. But the second he saw us, Johnny raised his knife defensively. Holly also noticed us, but didn't seem to care as she absently hummed _A-Tisket, A-Tasket_. Apparently her need for bloodshed wouldn't resurface for a while.

"Hello Jester," said Joker friendly. "Tell me, how would you like to die?"

Johnny looked nervous, his "devil may care" attitude and demeanor having vanished. He opened his mouth to speak, but nothing came out.

"However you wish to die, I'm sure you don't want it to happen today, correct? If that's the case, then could you be a doll and hand me that flag over there? I'd really appreciate it," said Joker with a smile that managed to look inviting and intimidating at the same time.

Johnny nodded and gave him the flag with the clown's face on it. The Joker took it and tossed it to Zelda.

"Thanks Jester, you're a real pal," said Joker as he saluted him. "Come on Freaks, we've got a challenge to win!"

We ran outside and made it about halfway to our base when we ran into the Dogs. Jess-Belle was holding our flag.

"Well well, Mistah J, it looks like we've reached an impasse," said Harley, her expression hard and angry.

"Not really. If you give up and accept defeat now Harl, I may let you pack your things before I kick you out," replied Joker with a smirk.

"So sure of victory are you?" asked Harley with her hands on her hips.

"You say that like you actually have a chance. Make this any easier and my victory won't be half as funny," retorted Joker.

Just then Edward, Violet, Elise, Johnny, and Holly all appeared. They were all shouting about the opposite teams having captured their flags, but stopped when they saw the situation.

"Way to go Eddy, you sure proved me wrong. I really should have brought you with us, you could have saved the day!" said Joker sarcastically. Edward scowled but refused to meet the Joker's eyes.

"Dogs, get the flag to our base, and make it snappy. Do whatever you have to do to get it there," ordered Harley.

"Freaks, take care of the Dogs, and while you're at it get their flag to our base," ordered Joker.

The Joker made the first move and tried to hit Harley, but she moved out of the way just in time. He continued to try to hit her, but she was faster.

"Hold still, Daddy can't kill you while you're jumping around!" he said.

And with that, we were off. Zelda took off for the theater while Jess-Belle made for the courthouse. Nearly everyone on my team chased after Jess-Belle, but Robin and I were the only ones who realized Zelda needed protection from the Dogs. We ran with her and kept Holly and Drake at bay. The other Dogs were helping Jess-Belle reach their goal. We made it back to the theater, but just as we were about to go inside, a loud, piercing alarm went off. The Dogs had won.

Zelda let out an angry growl through her teeth. Drake stopped chasing us and grabbed Holly by the arm to make her stop too, his face smug with victory. The Dogs had won, which meant that one of us would die. Seeing Holly before me, it occurred to me then that I had the opportunity to, quite literally, kill two birds with one stone. As Holly and Drake began walking away, I grabbed Holly by her hair and dragged her back as I pressed my knife against the skin of her throat. At first she was confused, but then she started to fight back, snarling and hissing like an animal. I didn't know what was wrong with her or what the doctors believed was wrong with her, but I made my own diagnosis: Holly was nothing more than a mindless zombie, one that had ticked me off by trying to kill me. I wanted to make her death slow and painful, but that just wasn't in the cards. I could wait until later of course, but if I did it now it would save my team from facing the wrath of the Wheel, and possibly my own life. As I began to slice open her throat Robin grabbed my arm.

"Rose stop, don't kill her!" he said.

He had pulled on my arm and I jerked it back, and as I did I accidentally cut into the side of her mouth and into her left cheek, making it look like she had a lop-sided grin, which made it look like the Joker was responsible for this. To make up for my mistake, I quickly carved an _M _on her forehead, and as I did I noticed an open manhole just a few feet away from me. Before Robin could stop me, I dropped her writhing body down the hole. She screamed all the way down, until I heard a bone-crushing splat and a large splash.

"Why did you do that?" asked Robin furiously. "She wasn't a threat, that was completely uncalled for!"

"We lost, and Joker was going to eliminate one of us tonight," I said as I put my knife back in my pocket, I would clean it later. "You have protection so that's no problem for you, but the rest of us would have been on the chopping block. We can't afford to lose any more people at this point, I was thinking of the team as a whole. Besides, she tried to kill me in the last challenge, and I didn't appreciate that very much. When are you going to learn, Robin, that you can't save any of us, or anyone else for that matter? The people you save will all die anyway, you're wasting your time and throwing your life away. Maybe one day you'll finally come to accept that."

Robin glowered at me and said, "You're wrong." Despite what he said I thought I heard just the tiniest hint of doubt, which brought a smile to my lips. Zelda high-fived me, and then we went back to find the Joker, and found him wrestling with Harley on the ground. Harley's hat had been pulled off and her pigtails had come undone. Their costumes were torn in several places, and they were both covered in scratches and bruises. They yelled insults at each other, most of them made up and nonsensical. Either they hadn't heard the siren or they just didn't care, most likely the latter.

"Um, the Dogs won, so you can quit fighting now," I said. They didn't respond and kept rolling around on the ground like animals, and so I repeated myself, louder this time. They finally stopped, with Joker on top, looking positively murderous.

"You hear that Mistah J, I won," said Harley, smugly and out of breath. She whipped out a gun and pointed at him. "You have to do what I asked. You have to let me do it, I don't care that the kids and the world are watching. I've waited too long for this moment."

The Joker's expression calmed dramatically and he pulled himself off of her. He walked away and stared off into space, as if he had forgotten why he was there or what he was doing.

"Mistah J?" asked Harley, her gun still aimed at his head. "Come on now, don't try to get out of it. I won fair and square."

"I know that Harley," he said softly. "It's just that I don't want to ruin the surprise. You know how I love surprises, and I love surprising you even more. I've been working on this for so long, and to spoil it now… it would be a travesty. I wanted it to be absolutely perfect, but if you really want me to ruin everything for you, I understand. You have every right to this, and I shouldn't have made you suffer like this. Sure, it would only be a few weeks more, but I suppose that's just too long for someone in your position. You're my little harlequin, and I shouldn't torment you so. I'll let you do it Harley, if you really want me to."

Harley stared at him, as if unable to speak. The Joker gazed at her with a face that was the very expression of martyrdom, and she began to seem uncertain.

"No, no no," she said, shaking her head. She dropped the gun and said, "Mistah J I'm sorry. I don't wanna ruin your plans, and I especially don't want you to ruin them for my sake. I guess I can be patient a little longer, after all, you know what you're doing. I was wrong to act the way I did, and you have every right to kick me out of here. Can ya ever forgive me?"

The Joker smiled and held out his arms. "Of course I can doll-face. Baby, you're the greatest."

Harley let out a delighted little squeal and ran into his outstretched arms and he swung her around in a circle.

"What just happened?" asked Robin, looking baffled by what he had just seen.

"Further proof that even when the Joker loses, he still wins," I said, a bit taken aback, as well.

After everyone had come back, the Joker, still holding Harley, said, "Well, that was fun. Anyone up for an elimination?"

"No need. I already killed Holly," I announced matter-of-factly.

"Before or after we won?" Jess-Belle inquired, her eyes narrowed.

"After," I replied. "It's not like she was of any value to you, she was dead weight. You should thank me for killing her and not one of your more useful teammates."

"You bitch! You cheater! One of you were supposed to die tonight, this has got to be against the rules!" exclaimed Jess-Belle. "Joker, eliminate one of them anyway!"

The Joker pretended to mull it over for a bit, then said, "Sorry Ace, but nowhere in the rules does it say murder isn't allowed after a challenge has been won. I'm afraid you're out of luck."

"Then what's to stop me from killing one of them?" she fired back.

"We're trying to limit the deaths to one per day. Believe me, I'd love to lock you all in a room and make the last one standing my apprentice, but I have a show to do, and if we go through you kiddies too quickly it won't work out as well. In other words, don't do it or your team is toast," he said jovially.

"You're just making this up as you go along, aren't you?" she said.

"You say that like it's a bad thing," he chuckled.

"This is so unfair," grumbled Jess-Belle, and her team agreed.

"Life's not fair, kid. The sooner you learn that the better," said Joker with a grin. He then signed off the episode and carried Harley back to the house, and we followed them.

**~Robin's POV~**

After the challenge was over, I went to the showers. I turned the temperature up as hot as I could stand, and let the hot water rain down on my body in an attempt to relax a bit. In a way it did help, if only marginally. I could never get over the fact that with all the comforts and luxuries such as the library, the arcade, and even the steaming water in this shower, it was more than possible to forget this place was a prison. The others took great pleasure in everything this house had to offer, and why shouldn't they? Most would die soon anyway. For me, they served as tiny distractions from the hell I was being forced to live in, though they never took my mind off my dilemma for long.

Eventually the hot water ran out and I reluctantly left the shower to once again face reality. I dried off and put my suit back on, only to find Jess-Belle waiting at the door, looking upset.

"Jess-Belle, what's wrong?" I asked.

"I need your help," she said as she gazed up at me with her light blue eyes. "I need to pay back Rose for what she did to us today. You know how she killed Holly today for no reason other than to save her own skin and to get back at her for trying to kill her. My team was already severely outnumbered and she just made it worse by cheating. One of the Freaks should have died today, but the rules were broken. I want you to kill her."

I took a step back. I didn't know much about this girl, I had heard on the news that she had been sentenced to Arkham for drug abuse but Bruce had said that wasn't true. I had never thought to ask him the real reason she was in Arkham, and now I wish I had. I had a theory from when she had talked Lee into killing himself, but solid information would have been nice. "You know I can't do that."

"But you've killed before, you could do it again. I know you don't want to lose such a valuable teammate, but the Joker will be merging the teams soon, and if you bump her off now that's one less threat later. Besides," she said as she put her hands on my shoulders and came so close that we were mere inches apart. She was dazzling, she had the kind of body models would sell their souls for. "She's so dangerous, you'd be doing the world a favor. She's a psychopath, you know. She's killed a lot of people, most of them innocent. If she becomes the Joker's apprentice it'll spell doom for all of Gotham. Not a single person in the entire world cares if she lives or dies. You'd be doing her a favor, too. You'd be saving her from herself."

"I won't kill her, Jess-Belle," I insisted, though I could feel my resolve beginning to falter slightly.

"But you're not like Rose, are you?" she continued, her voice becoming a seductive purr. "You have people back home who care about you, people who love you and want you to come back home safe and sound. I bet if you played like the rest of us the Joker would let you go home, home to your life and loved ones. You wouldn't have to make killing a habit, just do it long enough to beat the Joker at his own game. It's the only sensible way to play this game, if you don't you'll be killed."

"Why do you want me to kill her so badly?" I asked. "Why not kill her yourself?"

"Because I want to form an alliance," she said as she put my arms around her waist. "I care about you too Robin, and I think we could help each other out here. Maybe we could both get out of here alive. I may be able to help you, but only if you'll do this teensy weensy favor for me."

She pressed her lips against mine, and I felt my resolve crumble. I kissed her back, reveling in her sweet scent and her warm touch. I had been under so much stress lately, and it all seemed to just melt away with her in my arms. For a moment I believed her, I believed she did care and that listening to her would be a good idea, and that she could help me get out of here and that everything would be all right if I would only trust her. But then Bruce's face popped into my head. How disappointed would he be if he could see me now? I realized I was making a huge mistake and pulled away, and her expression became livid.

"Are you going to kill her or not?" she asked, her voice no longer flirtatious, but furious.

"I will not," I said as I stared her down. I felt guilty and dirty about the kiss, but I made myself not think about it.

"Fine, I'll find some other sap to do it. Or maybe I won't have her killed at all just yet," she mused to herself. "Maybe I'll have my revenge in a different way."

"What are you going to do?" I asked. I realized that she wanted me to kill Rose, not just for her own gain, but because she wanted me to break my rule, probably just to amuse herself.

She turned away from me and said, "Let's just say I want an eye for an eye."

**~Rose's POV~**

That night, after everyone had gone to bed, I found that I couldn't keep my eyes closed, as usual. I decided to go the kitchen for a snack. I quietly climbed out of bed and snuck into the mess hall, and found Harley with a dead henchwoman at her feet.

"Marionette, what are you doing up?" she asked. She was holding her hammer behind her back, which was splattered with blood.

"I was just getting something to eat," I told her. "What did she do?"

"She's had her eyes on Mistah J since the day he hired her, and I caught him lookin' at her a few times, so I fired her. I know I shouldn't be jealous, I know my Puddin' loves me and would never do such a thing to me, but I've been under a lot of stress lately and the last thing I need is a henchgirl who can't keep her hands to herself."

"Are you all right?" I asked her. I wondered if the woman really had been eyeing Joker, or if he really had been attracted to her, but it was plain to see that something was bothering Harley.

She didn't answer right away. She took her time and then said, "Mari, can I call ya Mari? Marionette is kind of a mouthful."

"Sure, I don't care."

"Mari, have ya ever wanted somethin' so much, so much that it hurt, only to get it and find that it's not as wonderful as you thought it would be?"

I wondered what she was referring to. Joker? Possible, but doubtful, though it most likely had something to do with their argument. "No, I don't think that's never happened to me. I've never really had anything."

"I guess the real problem is, the person who's supposed to win this, I don't want them to win. I don't want them to die, but I don't want them to win, either. Does that make sense? Of course it doesn't, how could I expect you to understand?"

"You and Joker already have a winner picked out? Who?" I asked.

"I can't tell ya, or else you'd kill her. Ya know, you'd make a great apprentice. I've been watchin' you, and of everyone here I think you got what it takes to win and be a good sidekick. It's too bad ya can't win, though."

"Pardon? Are you saying my death is inevitable?"

She nodded slowly and said, "I'm not tryin' to scare ya, and I think you'd be a lot better than the one who's supposed to win, but it's just not meant to be." She paused, then said randomly, "By the way, I noticed you and Shadow are kind of an item, and I gotta say, you could do much better."

I had to bite back my laughter. The thought of Harley Quinn giving anyone dating advice was laughable, but of course I didn't tell her that. Instead I said, "Maybe I should find a nice clown to hook up with."

She smiled and said, "If that's what you like." Her smile faltered a bit and she said, "You think everything will be all right? Not for you, of course, but you know."

"I'm sure everything will work out in the end," I assured her. I had no idea why I was comforting the crazy clown lady, especially since she had just flat out told me I was going to die, but here I was, doing it anyway. Harley was very childish, not unintelligent, but mentally she was younger than me.

Harley's face brightened as she said, "I've enjoyed talking to you Mari, I really have. Usually when I have problems I go to Mistah J or Red, but since I can't really talk to either of them about this I'm glad you're willing to listen. I was worried about going back to Mistah J all worried and anxious, he hates it when I'm down in the dumps, he's such a sweetheart. Good luck in the next challenge, I really mean that." She embraced me tightly and began doing cartwheels out of the mess hall.

"Wait, what is the next challenge?" I asked before she could leave.

"I don't know yet, my Puddin' doesn't tell me about the challenges until the night before, and sometimes he doesn't tell me about them at all. Sorry!"

And with that, she was gone.


	16. Chapter 16

Three days passed and I couldn't stop thinking about what Harley had said. If she and the Joker already knew who they wanted to win, then why bother with this contest in the first place? And who had they chosen? Harley had said it was a girl, and since apparently it wasn't me, that left Zelda, Violet, Jess-Belle, and Elise. It would probably be either Zelda or Jess-Belle, but knowing the Joker is could be any of them. I also wondered what would happen if their "chosen one" were to be killed, what would they do? Or perhaps they were taking measures to prevent that from happening by rigging the challenges. In any case, it seemed my days were numbered, but I refused to let that get to me. I would fight with my head held high as if I weren't a condemned marionette.

I had been talking with Zelda about our favorite movie stars and weapons of choice in the billiard room when our next challenge was announced.

"Listen up kids! Get to the auditorium pronto!" Harley shouted into the intercom.

We both made for the auditorium and got on the stage. I was surprised when I only saw Harley there, and not the Joker. She was practically bouncing up and down with anticipation and excitement as she waited impatiently for the rest of us to arrive.

"So there are only nine of ya left now? Boy, we're going through kids fast. It's seems like it was just yesterday we had a full brood, and now we're down to less than half. The nest is emptying, I guess time really does fly when you're havin' fun," she commented once we were all there and accounted for. "Okay, let's get started. Now, you're probably all wondering where Mistah J is."

"Did he run out of ideas of ways to torture us?" asked Robin sarcastically.

"You wish. Mistah J's always full of brilliant ideas, like the one for your challenge today. Mistah J put me in charge of today's challenge, can you believe it? He's actually letting me host the show, all by myself! Usually he doesn't let me do anything important with stuff like this, so we have to do this just right so I can show him he didn't make a mistake. He put a lot of faith in me for this, and we are _not going to let him down_." That last part came out as more of a growl.

"What exactly are we doing?" I asked.

"We're puttin' on a play!" Harley squealed excitedly. "It was Mistah J's idea but he's lettin' me direct it! He even let me come up with the story. You're gonna put on a play for everyone in Gotham, except unlike most plays you won't be using normal methods like scripts or planning, you'll be ad libbing the whole thing."

"And how exactly do you expect us to do this? How are we supposed to know what we're supposed to do if you're not even going to tell us?" said Edward.

"Calm down Shadow-boy, I wasn't finished. I'll be giving you your parts and I'll tell you about your character and the premise of the story so you can use it as a springboard and go from there. You'll be given a few hours to find costumes and work on your characters, and then tonight you'll put on the show. I'll basically be giving you the description of the story, but you guys have to tell it."

"You can't expect us to do that, or at least, you can't expect us to do it without failing miserably," Johnny pointed out. He actually seemed enthusiastic about the challenge, unlike most of us. I actually looked forward to it too, which surprised me.

"This challenge is to help you develop and strengthen your improvisation skills. Mistah J is the king of improv, whatever happens in Gotham, he's always ready for it, he can make the most of any situation thrown at him," explained Harley, a look of awe on her face that she quickly replaced with a more serious expression. "Tonight you guys are actors puttin' on a show for your public and for Mistah J, and you can't let them down, especially not my Puddin'. A good actor can take whatever's thrown at them and run with it. Don't you guys have any imagination? Surely you can come with a decent story, just make it up as you go along. Just be glad this isn't a musical," she added. "I wanted to make it a musical, but sadly people just can't burst spontaneously into song like that. Too bad though, it would have made this whole thing so much more fun. By the way, there won't be an elimination ceremony tonight, because one of you is going to die in the production, sorta like a snuff film."

"And who will be dying?" asked Zelda curiously.

"That's for you guys to decide. But let me clarify, ya can't just kill someone randomly, it has to be at just the right time or it won't work. You see, in the art of filmmaking and the like, the more characters you have lined up to die, the less dramatic their deaths have to be. But when you only have like one or two characters set to die, you have to add a lot of drama and suspense to make up for the lack of death so that the audience won't get bored. Mistah J told me this, he'd make a great director, don't you think? But I digress. Since there will only be one death, it has to be absolutely perfect. It has to happen at just the right time in just the right way, and it has to be spectacular. Nothing less will do for Mistah J. If one of you kills someone at the wrong time or in the wrong way, you get to share a coffin."

"No pressure," I muttered under my breath.

"Now, I'll tell ya who your character is and their part in the tale. Chuckles, you'll be playing a prince named Thomas."

"A frog prince?" he asked as he rolled his eyes.

"Nope, a regular one. Marionette, Eris, you'll be playing two peasant sisters vying for the heart of Prince Chuckles over there. Marionette, your name is Columbine and Eris, your name is Esmeralda. Raggedy Anne, you'll be playing their widow mother, Joanna. Raggedy Andy and the Ace of Spades will be King Victor and Queen Yvaine, and Jester will be playing a fortune teller by the name of Cicero."

"Why can't I be queen with Drake?" Elise whined.

"Because I won't have you two ruining my play by making out in the middle of a scene, or worse. It's best if you two are kept as far away from each other as possible. Besides, you don't have what it takes to be a proper queen, Acey does. Now, Shadow, you'll be playing a hideous beast, and your name will be Raoul."

"Gee, thanks," he replied sardonically.

"Sorry, but Mistah J said that I had to have an ugly creature in the story and to have you play it. No clue as to why, though," shrugged Harley. "Mimey, you'll be playing a servant named Willow. I would have given ya a bigger role but since you don't talk this is the best I could give you. Now here's the premise of the story. The king and queen have just given birth to a son, and the fortune teller Cicero tells them that another lady has also given birth on the same night to twin girls and that the prince will one day marry one of them. If he marries the older one, peace and prosperity will follow, but if he chooses the younger twin the land will be brought to ruin. The beast Raoul wants Esmeralda, the older sister, for his bride and will kill her if he can't have her. When Prince Thomas grows up he knows he must marry Esmeralda but loves Columbine and must decide what matters more to him, his kingdom or the girl who stole his heart," said Harley dreamily. "Now, that should be enough to get you started. Go look for costumes and then come back and start workin' on your characters."

We went back stage and found several racks of clothes and costumes, and I was reminded of the first challenge.

"It sounds like the only things missing from Harley's story are a fairy godmother and a poisoned apple," said Jess-Belle as she searched through the racks of clothing.

"Okay Rose, since we're playing peasant sisters we need to find some rags," said Zelda as she began digging through costumes and throwing them behind her.

"Since you'll be playing the older sister who's supposed to marry the prince, you should probably wear something a little fancier than me," I told her.

"Sounds good to me. Here's something." She pulled out a long blue dress that managed to be pretty while still looking like something a peasant would wear.

"That was fast. Think this will work for me?" I pulled out a forest-green dress with several ugly patches in it.

"Perfect," she said approvingly.

"I can't believe I have to play a hideous beast. What am I even supposed to wear? I'm not finding any monster costumes, and don't say I don't need a costume to look like an ogre," complained Edward as he searched through the costumes.

"You're right, you'd make a far better lady in waiting," said Zelda, smirking.

"Oh Zelda, the things you say never fail to brighten my day," sighed Edward exasperatedly.

"Think about it this way, it'll give you a chance to strut your stuff and show what a great actor you are," I told him. "Or you could trip over yourself and look like a fool for the whole world to see and amuse the rest of us. Personally, I wouldn't mind some cheap entertainment."

A smile briefly flashed onto Edward's face for a moment, then disappeared and was replaced with a scowl. I stuck my tongue out at him but said nothing more to him.

"Here," said Robin as he tossed him a mask. Edward held it up to examine it, and then showed it to us. It wasn't a monster mask per se, it was the face of a horribly deformed man.

"It'll do, I suppose," said Edward resignedly.

"What do you think of this outfit, Drakey?" Elise asked as she held up a simple brown dress.

"I'd say you'd look beautiful in it, but you'd look beautiful in anything," he replied.

"Oh, baby! You say the sweetest things!" said Elise as she threw herself into his arms and Johnny made a gagging motion. "I'll go try it on, don't move."

"I'll be here," he said with a grin as she darted away.

"You and Elise were made for each other," said Jess-Belle as she searched through the racks of clothing.

"Yeah, we are," Drake agreed adoringly.

"It's too bad it can't last forever," she added nonchalantly.

"What do you mean?"

"One or both of you will eventually die in this game. Oh come on, you didn't really think the Joker would let both of you live and have a happily ever after, right? You're going to lose her Drake, one way or another."

Drake's face filled with worry, but he tried to deny it by saying, "We'll find a way. I won't lose Elise, our love will conquer all."

"Not on the Joker's show, it won't," said Jess-Belle in a sing-song voice.

He glared at her and picked out a costume to try on. It was a regal, navy blue robe with a painted gold crown. Johnny found an extremely colorful jester costume to wear that I supposed could pass as a fortune teller suit. Jess-Belle smirked and chose a royal purple dress and a silver crown. Violet chose a ragged dress that was so filthy it could have been any color of the rainbow.

I found a dressing room and changed into the ragged green dress. Since I was playing a peasant, I also took off my leggings and boots and left my feet bare. I took down my pigtails and let my hair flow freely, and when I looked in the mirror I was sure Harley would approve.

I went back behind the curtain and began to try to get a feel of my character. Columbine was a girl who would be overshadowed by her older sister. She would love the prince back, but would see no future with him because of the prophecy. How would this make her feel? Sorrowful? Bitter? Angry? I decided the best way to go would be a mix of all three. But despite these feelings, she would also try to fight for the heart of the prince, she would not go down without a fight, regardless of the consequences to those around her. I couldn't really figure out her character much more, because I wasn't sure how the others would portray their characters and how she would interact with them. I waited until the others had found their costumes and we began to try to decide how the play would go and what our characters would be like, with little success. There was only so much we could plan out in advance.

"You must be so excited Robin, you'll finally have an excuse to kiss me!" said Zelda as she twirled around in her dress, which Robin ignored with his perpetual scowl.

"Hiya Gotham, your favorite clown girl here!" said Harley as she waved wildly at the camera. "Mistah J won't be appearing tonight 'cause he's lettin' me host his show! So, anyone wanna guess what we're doin' tonight? Anyone? No one? Well then I'll tell ya. Straight from the Laughing Academy, made by loonies for loonies, we happily present to you: Prophecy of Love. Enjoy!" Harley went behind the curtain and said, "All righty kids, get out on stage 'cause it's time to get this show on the road!" announced Harley.

"She barely gave us any time to prepare!" said Elise worriedly.

"The play will focus on Robin, Zelda, and Rose mostly, but everyone else will have to play it by ear and come in at the appropriate times. Just don't screw up or you'll end up in a world of hurt," said Jess-Belle.

We all got on stage behind the curtain, where Harley was waiting for us. She tossed a baby doll (Holly's headless baby doll) to Jess-Belle and said, "Listen up everyone, I'll tell you how to open the play up and then you're on your own. The king and queen will have just given birth to the prince, and then Cicero will come tell them that Joanna has also given birth and what he saw in the prophecy. Then we skip to the present. Got it? Find your places!"

Everyone except Drake and Jess-Belle hurried off the stage. The set was dark, but I could make out a bed, which Jess-Belle quickly got in and wrapped up the baby doll in a sheet to hide its missing head, and Drake got on the bed with her, as if to admire his newborn son.

"Action!" shouted Harley.

The curtain came up and blinding lights flashed on. Drake looked like he was ready to faint, but Jess-Belle kept her cool and got him started.

"We have been blessed with a son. Look, he has your nose."

Drake swallowed and calmed down a bit and said, "He will be a great king one day, just like his fathers before him."

"I guess this would as good a time as any for me to introduce myself to the crowd," whispered Johnny. He moved to the edge of the stage and knocked on a door.

"Who could that be at this hour?" said Jess-Belle.

"Don't worry Je- Yvaine. I'm sure it's just one of the servants," said Drake as he went to open the door. He opened it and Johnny arrogantly swept into the room.

"Greetings, your Majesties! May I congratulate you on the birth of your little prince. Today is a good day for out kingdom, it is indeed!"

"Cicero, what do you want?" asked Drake.

"I am here to deliver a message, for the baby you have birthed this night holds the fate of the entire kingdom in his tiny hands. Alas, another woman has also been in labor this night, the widow Joanna has given birth to twin girls. The poor woman lost her husband just last week, and now with two little girls to take care of, my my. Just a few hours ago, having nothing better to do, I was gazing into my crystal ball, and I saw that your son would marry one of her daughters. Though I could not foresee who he would choose, I did see what would happen with either choice. If he marries the elder daughter the land will be filled with peace and prosperity for all. But if he should choose the second daughter, the kingdom will be brought to its knees in ruin."

"And what would you have us do about this?" asked Drake worriedly.

"It's simple, really. Just make sure your son, ah, what did you say the boy's name was?"

"We didn't tell you his name," said Jess-Belle.

"Then would you mind telling me now?"

"Thomas. His name is Prince Thomas," she said as she looked down at the doll lovingly.

"Well then, just make sure Tommie chooses the right girl and everything will be just fine. I'm off to tell Joanna the news, goodnight to you both." Johnny took a gallant bow and then left.

"Draw the curtains!" I whispered.

"Why? The scene may not be over yet," said Elise. "I need to go out there so Johnny can give me the news, like he said."

"There's no need for that, just help me draw the curtains," I said as I began to pull the ropes. She and I pulled them together, and then we all quickly set to work on setting up the next scene. We took out the bed and found that behind the backdrop of the room in the castle was a backdrop of a nature setting. We pulled it back and set up a few more props, and after several hurried whispers of direction, I shoved Robin out on stage and Zelda followed after, and we pulled the curtains back again.

Robin was taken a bit off guard, but quickly recovered and said to Zelda, "Oh, Esmeralda, I didn't see you there. It's a lovely morning, isn't it?"

"Why yes it is, but enough about the weather, darling. We need to plan our wedding, we haven't even set a date!" Wow, I knew Zelda hated small talk and always said exactly what she was thinking, but this was taking it to a whole other level.

"Well you see my dear, it's just that… I'm not sure if I'm ready to go through with this wedding."

"We've been engaged since the day we were born! Surely you've had enough time to prepare."

"I know, and I apologize, but I just need some time to think."

"You know what will happen if we don't marry," she warned.

"I know, but give me some time, please."

Zelda left the stage in a huff, and Robin also left. I had to hand it to him, while his performance was far from flawless, it was pretty good given the circumstances. I decided that it was my turn to come out on stage, and so I grabbed Elise by the arm and dragged her out there with me to complete the next scene. Luckily, Elise seemed to understand where I was going with this.

"Columbine, go feed the pigs, and then scrub the floors," she ordered.

"But Mother, I don't have time. I was going to go see someone-"

"You think that matters to me? As long as you're living under my roof you'll do as I say."

"You never let me do anything! I have a life you know, but all you care about is Esmeralda!" Though I had never had a parent to argue with, I thought I was doing a pretty good impression of a whiny teenager complaining to her awful mother. This acting stuff wasn't exactly easy, but the words I needed to say just seemed to come to me, as though I had spent days poring over a script.

"You know the prophecy, you're lucky the king didn't come and kill you to make sure you were never able to even meet the prince. I don't know why you would want to bring ruin to our land, but it doesn't matter. Now go feed the pigs."

Elise left the stage, and I said, "Feed the pigs, scrub the floors, mend Esmeralda's fancy dresses. All I ever do is work while Esmeralda gets to do everything she wants, just because she's the good child. I have better things to do than stay here to be told what to do. I think I'll go see the Prince."

Right on cue, Robin entered the stage and came up to me. While he crossed the stage, I glanced down to where Harley was sitting, evaluating our performance. From her expression, I couldn't really tell what she thought of our performance so far, but at least she didn't look like she hated it or was about to puke.

"Columbine," he said, a forced smile on his lips. "How lovely it is to see you again!"

I threw myself into his arms and embraced him, because it seemed like what my character would do, though I quickly released him. "Thomas, what are you doing here? If someone sees us together-"

"There is no one watching, and I had to see you. Oh my dearest Columbine, my wedding draws ever nearer, and I don't know what to do. I know I must marry your sister, but I want you more than anything else in the world."

"Have you ever considered leaving the kingdom and running away?" I asked him.

"No, of course not. How could you even say such a thing? I cannot leave my kingdom, when I am king it will be my duty to do whatever I must to protect this land."

"But if I asked you to, would you?"

"I don't know, it would go against everything I know. And it would ruin the kingdom, I can't allow that."

"So you would sacrifice your own happiness for the wellbeing of others?"

"Yes," he said, his eyes narrowing a bit. Our conversation was beginning to extend past the realms of the play, and he knew it, as did I. "I would lay down my life for those who need me. Wouldn't you?"

"I can't ever see myself doing such a thing. Perhaps for someone I truly cared for, but even then maybe not. Much less for people I've never met or ever will meet. All the faceless masses, and you know they won't be grateful for your sacrifice. People hate to be governed, and even the kings that are beloved are never fully appreciated or truly loved by their people. You'll pass a law that will make one man happy and anger another. Or you might wrongly convict an innocent man, or vice-versa, and be called a fool by your subjects. They need to be led by someone, and they know it, but they'll hate you all the same. Why not leave all this behind and let another be king?"

"Because I was chosen for it, and to deny it would be to deny part of myself. They may hate me, but they need me, and I can't ignore them. I love you Columbine, but I must marry your sister. There is no other way."

"I am not going to give up, you know. I may even keep pestering you after the wedding."

"You wouldn't be Columbine if you didn't," he said with a smile that didn't reach his eyes. We both then exited the stage, and we were replaced by Edward in his mask and in a dark robe.

"I saw the lady Esmeralda again today," he said to himself. He was stooped over and paced around the stage anxiously, his voice a rasp. He was good at playing the beast, and I wasn't sure if that was a good thing or a bad thing. "I saw her, yet I could not touch her. Why must she belong to the prince, when he does not love her? I've seen him, he hardly even looks at her, and yet they are to be married by the boy's eighteenth birthday. I know of the prophecy, but why does he not take the younger sister? I can see his love for her, it dances in his eyes like fire. He loves her almost as much as I love my Esmeralda. Esmeralda, why won't you have me? You won't even speak to me, you scream at the sight of me and flee. Is it because I am ugly? Because I am not handsome like the prince? Why is it that those who are beautiful on the outside are chosen, and the rest of us, the freaks and monsters, the outcasts and rejects, are so hated by the world? Please love me Esmeralda, for if you will not I will be forced to do something terrible. I cannot allow that pompous brat to have you, but if you will not choose me I will have no choice but to kill you. To see the pain and fear in your eyes as you drift away from this world and from me would be unbearable, but not nearly as painful as watching you from afar as I have, watching you kiss him and have his children. To see you grow old with him instead of me, would be worse than death. Be mine, Esmeralda, or you will die!" he roared.

Edward ran off the stage, and Harley had us close the curtain for a commercial break.

"Okay, what are we doing after the commercial ends?" I asked. This play couldn't last too much longer, but at the same time it couldn't end without someone dying. So far that opportunity hadn't arisen, what if it never did?

"Drake and I will go out, Drake you'll follow my lead, got it?" said Jess-Belle.

"Sure, okay," he agreed hesitantly.

"Violet, you'll come in and do something a servant would do, and after our scene I think Zelda and Rose should have a fight over lover-boy," Jess-Belle continued.

"With our fists, of course, and any other weapons we can find," said Zelda.

"Zel, I think I proved my first night in Arkham who the better fighter is," I pointed out.

"You got lucky," she said with a dismissive wave of her hand.

"Hey Edward, nice touch having the beast swear to kill the woman he loves if she won't love him back. The audience will eat that up," said Elise.

"Yes Drake, the audience will love it, because the monster is willing to sacrifice that which he loves for something greater. He loves her so much that he would forsake his own happiness to save the woman he can't live without," said Jess-Belle. Drake scowled darkly at her, but I picked up some anxiety in his face, too. He seemed to be very conflicted about something.

"The curtains are about to go up, you'd better find your places," said Robin flatly.

Drake and Jess-Belle got in place just as the curtain came back up. Violet also went out with a broom and began to sweep the stage as they spoke. Jess-Belle said, "Victor, I believe we have a problem with our son. I believe Thomas wishes to marry Columbine, and not Esmeralda."

"What makes you say that?" he asked.

"Have you not you seen the way he looks at her? He talks to her and pays her more attention than he ever does Esmeralda. He knows the prophecy, yet he's about to doom our entire kingdom."

"What do you think we should do? Have Columbine executed?"

"No, Thomas must choose to let her go himself. If we kill her he will only resent us, and he will never marry Esmeralda. He must realize that he cannot have her, and that deluding himself otherwise is foolish and pointless. Have you ever felt that way about someone, Victor? Have you ever loved someone you could never truly have?"

Drake began to look nervous, and it wasn't because of stage fright. "You must talk to the boy, make him see reason."

"As his father, you must do it. You must be the one to show him that his love cannot last. I shall send him in." Jess-Belle strode off the stage and ushered out Robin.

"You wanted to see me father?" he asked.

"Yes, my son. I know about you and Columbine."

Robin's eyes widened appropriately as he said, "There is nothing between us."

"Of course there is. You love her, but son, you cannot have her. You know that."

"I cannot do that. She is my life, my world. I shall not marry either sister, so that I can still love her and not doom our kingdom."

"It does not work that way. You must marry one of them, or else."

"Or else what?"

"Or else… I am not sure. Willow! Go fetch Cicero and bring him here so that he may explain the prophecy in full to us."

Violet nodded and exited the stage and brought back with her Johnny. "Your Excellency, how may I be of service?"

"You told us that Thomas will marry one of the two twin sisters. But what will happen if he marries neither?"

"Actually, I don't know. The fates were a bit unclear about that part when they showed me what was to come, but let's just assume that something terrible will happen if you stay single."

"I will not let my life be dominated by a silly fortune," said Robin. "I shall not marry either sister, you cannot force me to wed one of them."

"No!" exclaimed Zelda as she dashed out onto the stage.

"Esmeralda, what are you doing here?" said Robin incredulously.

"Spying, of course! You shall marry me! It is the prophecy! I shall be queen, how dare you choose my sister over me!"

"He loves me! You cannot have him, he is mine!" I shouted as I too ran out on the stage. Zelda probably should have waited a little longer, but since she hadn't I figured now was as good a time as any for me to come out as well.

"You little wretch! The prince belongs to me!" yelled Zelda as she tried to punch me. I dodged and knocked her to the floor.

"Keep your hands off my dearest Esmeralda!" exclaimed Edward as he joined in. This whole thing was beginning to spiral out of control. "Don't you touch her again, filthy peasant!"

Edward pretended to push me out of his way and picked up Zelda and said, "Come, be my bride. The prince loathes you, but I promise to love you until the end of time."

"Ew, gross!" she said as she escaped his embrace. "Not even if you were the last the man on earth would I give myself to you!"

"Then you will die! Make your choice Esmeralda, live with me, or be buried and be eaten by worms."

"I'd rather be dead than be with you! Death would be far better!"

"All of you, get out now!" Drake suddenly screamed. Since he was our king, we had no choice but to oblige. As we exited the stage, I noticed Jess-Belle by his side, whispering something in his ear as the color drained from his face. How long had she been there? I hadn't seen her come back. She slipped him a small piece of paper, which he read and then crumpled into a ball and tossed over his shoulder. It landed at my feet, and I picked it up and smoothed it out.

"I wish to speak with the widow Joanna," Drake announced, his face very pale.

Jess-Belle left his side, and Elise came to stand before him. "You wished to see me, your Majesty?"

I looked down at the paper and read what it said.

_Save her, Drake. It's only way you can be together forever. You can't have her in life, but you can have her forever in death. You may die, but your love doesn't have to. Killer._

_Killer. _

_Killer. _

_Killer. _

_Kill Her._

"Listen to me, for what I have to say is very important. We cannot keep this up, and we both know it."

"What do you mean?" she asked, her expression confused.

"I love you more than anything else in the world, and I never want to be apart from you, but we both know that one of us will die," he said, his voice strong but trembling just a bit.

Elise's face suddenly filled understanding, she realized they weren't acting anymore, even though they were still in character. "Don't say that, darling. Love will find a way."

"It already has. You must die."

Elise took a step back. "You're going to kill me?"

"It's the only way. We can't both win this, at least if I kill you I'll make it clean and quick. No one else will go out of their way to make your death as painless as possible. I cannot allow anyone else the intimacy of stopping your heart."

"How can you say these things? You're not making any sense, I thought you loved me!"

"I do! And that's why I have to do this. I can't keep you in life, but one day I will have you in death. Nothing lasts forever, and even if we weren't here we'd both still die someday. I love you far too much to let them take you from me, this is the only way you can be mine forever. You won't feel a thing Sweetheart, and I'll win for both of us."

Tears rolled down her face as she said, "I don't know you anymore. When we were admitted to Arkham, we both swore we would never let the craziness get to us. We weren't insane even though we pretended to be, and we held onto our sanity and to each other. But you've allowed them to drive you mad, you're no longer the man I fell in love with."

"I know you can't understand why I'm doing this now, but maybe you'll understand in the next life. I love you Elise." He pulled out his knife and came at her.

"Drake stop it!" cried Elise as she tried to run, but he grabbed her by the back of her dress. "Please don't do this, you don't know what you're doing! If you love me you'll let me go!"

With sadness and determination in his eyes, Drake plunged the knife into her back. Elise stopped struggling and let out a loud cry of pain, then reached back and ripped the knife out of her back and stabbed him in the heart. His face was shocked, this was clearly not what he had expected to happen. They both collapsed to the floor in a pool of their mixed blood, and none of the rest of us knew what to do, except Johnny.

He ran out on the stage and said, "What is this? The king and the peasant widow, secretly in love? This is the scandal of the century! What must his wife and son think? And what will become of the kingdom now? I'll tell you what, absolutely nothing! There never was a prophecy, I tricked the king and queen! I fooled everyone!"

"What are you talking about? Why would you trick us? What was the point?" asked Jess-Belle as she entered the stage. Her face was full of disdain, but I saw satisfaction in her eyes. She had gotten what she wanted from Drake and Elise. I suspected she'd wanted Drake to kill Elise to get back at me for killing Holly, and that even though she'd lost another one of her team in the process, overall she was pleased with the results. And why not? She'd outdone herself on this one. Getting the obsessed lovebirds to kill each other, especially when she'd only planned on one death, would make any coldhearted killer feel proud of herself.

"There was no point. I never liked you or the king, so I fooled you into trying to force your son to marry a horrible woman who would make an even worse queen, which would have destroyed the kingdom. The prince can marry whoever the hell he wants, and the beast can have the girl of his dreams. Everyone can live happily ever after, just like everyone always does in these silly fairy tales."

"But I still don't see why you would-"

"I hope you enjoyed our show!" said Johnny as he turned to the camera and waved. "That's the end of our play, we'll be here all week. Remember to tip your waiters and waitresses and try the veal. You've been a wonderful audience, thank you, you're too kind!" He turned to us and said, "Get out here guys and bow!"

We all came back on stage and awkwardly bowed for our audience. Johnny then said, "Drake and Elise would have bowed with us, but they have awful stage fright. We love you, goodnight everybody!"

"Cut!" screamed Harley. She took the camera from the cameraman and threw it at the wall, breaking it in pieces. She then stormed on stage, and I could practically feel the seething rage and fury radiating from her. I could just imagine her face turning red and purple under the clown makeup.

"What was that? That was awful! Terrible! I gave you guys the simple job of putting on a decent production, and you completely screwed it up!"

"Hey, you don't give us a script or time to plan you take what you get," I said. Well, we had failed. I wondered how Harley had pictured it in her head, and if there was any way we could have possibly pulled it off to her liking.

"The play was going okay, until you let Drake and Elise ruin everything. And it was too short, you guys didn't even try to keep it going after they messed it up by killing each other. I admit you didn't have much to work with, but I bet a bunch of kindergarteners could have done better! Mistah J must be so disappointed, in you kids and in me. He'll never let me do anything like this again because you guys are such horrible actors!

As she opened her mouth to continue yelling at us, I heard slow clapping. It grew louder as the Joker descended the aisle to the stage.

"Mistah J, how long have you been in here? I thought you were gonna watch the show in our room," said Harley, looking worried.

"I felt like seeing it in person rather than on TV, and I have to say, well done! For the most part it was a bore, but that finale was spectacular. Who would have expected the king to be having an affair with a peasant? The king killed his lover in a sick attempt to save her, and she took him with her, talk about romance! And when Cicero revealed the whole thing to be a huge demented prank, what a twist! You can't write stuff like that! Overall, the play went above and beyond my expectations, you did great, Puddin' Pop."

Harley's worried expression transformed into one of pure joy and ecstasy as she threw herself into his arms. "You really thought it was good? I was so afraid you'd hate it."

"It was far from perfect, a blind-deaf person could tell you that much, but it amused me nonetheless."

Harley turned to face us and said, "Good job guys! Forget everything I said before, you're all amazing actors. We're done with you kids, you're free to go!"

"For now," added Joker with a wink as he set Harley on the ground. She tried to take his hand in hers as they walked away, but he swatted it away.

"You know, everyone's always told me, even my psychiatrist, that I should be a politician," said Johnny with a broad grin on his face. "But I think I'd make a better actor, don't you guys? Bring on the Oscars!"


	17. Chapter 17

Five days later, I'd just woken up and was in the bathroom touching up my smudged eyeliner, when Joker made an announcement over the intercom.

"Oh would you look at that, challenge time again, kiddies! Hurry, hurry, hurry, we have a big day ahead of us! So much time and so little to do. Oh wait, scratch that, reverse it."

Before I went to try to find the Joker, wherever he was, I went back to the girl's dorm to put on my boots and take my pills. It was still early, and so Jess-Belle and Zelda were just now waking up. Violet was already up, brushing her long hair.

Zelda groaned into her pillow, "Why can't he ever just let me sleep? Can't he understand that I'm in love with my bed? We aren't meant to be apart."

"The Joker sounded pretty excited about this one, it's going to be brutal," I mentioned.

"It'd better not be another false alarm," said Jess-Belle as looked at her reflection in a compact. "A few nights ago he woke us up in the middle of the night just for kicks. If this isn't an actual challenge, I'm going to give that clown a piece of my mind."

I left them and went to the mess hall. For breakfast, Cookie was serving meatloaf. Apparently the guy didn't care what meal he was serving, he cooked whatever he felt like cooking, whenever he wanted. As I tried to force the stuff down my throat, the Joker came in and greeted us, followed by the camera guy.

"I hope you're all enjoying breakfast, you'll need your energy today for the challenge I have in store for you," said Joker giddily. "First things first, though. From henceforth, there will be no more teams. It's every man for himself, now."

Exuberant cheers broke out over the mess hall. I had been waiting to hear this news since the first team challenge. Sure, most of the challenges hadn't required us to work as a team, but now we were officially free to play the game the way we wanted, plus we could kill our former team members without consequence.

"Second order of business, Chuckles is now fair game. You may now do whatever you want to him."

That also got a lot of cheers, louder than before.

"…That is, if you can catch him, which leads us into today's challenge. Chuckles has been released into the sewer system, whoever finds him and brings him back dead or alive will win immunity for him or herself. Bring him back before he can escape, and not only will you not die tonight, but you'll be free to torture him in all the ways your sick little minds can think of. Now, Happy Smiler Zoey will take you to the sewer."

A clown lady suddenly appeared out of nowhere at the Joker's side. "Come with me, guys. We have no time to waste!"

We left our half-eaten meal and followed her outside to an open manhole, which I recognized as the one I'd dropped Holly down in. She then passed out flashlights.

"The sewer is huge and gross, how are we supposed to find him in there?" asked Johnny as he flicked his flashlight on and off.

"I'm sure you'll find a way," she said with a shrug. "Just don't get lost. Croc's not down there, as far as we know, but that doesn't mean it's safe. Good luck!"

We each took our turn climbing down the ladder into the dark sewer. I half expected to see Holly's body down there, but all there was to show she had died down there were a few splatters of blood here and there. The only light was from our flashlights, and it smelled worse than I thought it would. I was standing in water and sewage up almost to my knees. There were several different tunnels to choose from, so we all split up. I immediately set off on my own to search for the Boy Wonder, as did the others.

"Hey Rose, wait up," called Edward as he ran up to me. "I want to talk to you."

"You want to talk about our relationship issues while we're wading through knee-high sewage? How romantic," I said as I rolled my eyes.

"I wanted to apologize for the way I acted before. Normally I wouldn't be apologizing, but when Holly almost killed you, it shook me. I shouldn't have waited so long to talk to you, but my pride is a hard thing to swallow, but seeing you makes it easier. We don't have time to ignore each other like children, so I just hope you'll forgive me."

"It wasn't entirely your fault, I shouldn't have led you on like I did. You know, I haven't quite given up on us. Not yet."

"Neither have I. Whatever time I have left, I want it to be with you."

"I'll take whatever you have to give," I said with a smile. I kissed his lips with a bit more force than I had intended. The rancid smell made it impossible to enjoy the kiss though and even made me feel a little sick, so I pulled back.

"Kissing isn't a great idea in a sewer," I said as I wrinkled my nose in disgust.

"Agreed. Rose, don't take this the wrong way, but I work best when I'm alone. Let's talk later, okay? After I've finally killed the bird boy."

"I look forward to it, after _I've_ killed him" I said as we parted ways.

**~Robin's POV~**

I woke up with a throbbing headache and a terrible smell in my nostrils. I opened my eyes and found myself lying in reeking sludge. I got to my feet and took in my surroundings. I was in a sewer, with only the knife I had been forced to carry and a flashlight. But there was something else to, a miniature tape player tied around my neck. Full of dread, I pushed play.

"Howdy-do Chuckles!" said Joker. "You're probably wondering why you were sleeping in crap, well I'll tell you why, because today I'm giving you a chance at freedom! You heard right, Sunny-Jim, you can leave Arkham City and I won't kill any precious citizens! You can go back to Batsy in one piece and reunite the Dynamic Duo, but on one condition. Right now all your fellow contestants are hounding you like a fat kid looking for ice cream. Kill at least one of them, and you'll be granted access through the shield and back into Gotham. Oh, I know about your one rule, I know how hard it must be to even think about doing such a dreadful thing, but you've killed before, surely you can do it again? Just one more time, and you're home free. What have you got to lose? Besides your mind, of course!" he laughed hysterically.

The tape ended and I slipped it off my neck and threw it at the sewer wall, shattering it. So this was it, he had finally taken away my immunity and thrown me to the wolves. All of the remaining contestants would love nothing more than the chance to torture me to death, they would savor each moment as they slowly and painfully carried out my demise. My only defenses were my hand-to-hand combat skills, and my knife. The skills Bruce had taught me came in handy in most situations, but not this one. I could take them all out, but I still wouldn't be allowed out of here, and they would only come back with a vengeance. I couldn't fight them off forever, sooner or later they would kill me.

For a long time I could only stare down at my grime-covered hands as I tried to think of a way out, but could think of none, none that could actually work anyway. The situation was hopeless, utterly hopeless. There was no way I could come out of this alive and with my honor intact. Every night I saw Bruce and the others mocking and cursing me for what I had done, and I was beginning to wonder if they were right. Maybe I couldn't win, maybe I had been corrupted. Maybe I would be better off dead. I didn't want to die, I had my whole life ahead of me, but death seemed to be the only option at this point.

Or was it? Why should I have to die? I had a life to live, a life of protecting people. Jason was dead now, and there was nothing he could do to save the lives of those who needed him. Those people out there needed me, and Bruce needed a Robin. I had already killed once, one more time couldn't hurt, right? The others would all die anyway, all except one. It didn't matter who delivered the death blow, because there was no hope left for them. But I had hope. I could live. They chose this fate, I had been forced into it, so why should I have to die with them?

What was I thinking? Was I actually considering _killing_ one of them? As much as I wanted to deny it, I was seriously considering it. The thought of murdering one of them sounded better every time the thought entered my mind, it would be so simple, so easy. I was slipping, I could feel it happening slowly, ever since I had been forced to kill Jack. I thought I had been fighting it off, I thought I had been resisting the Joker and beating him, but it was becoming clear that I was losing my mind. In a way I didn't feel any different than before, like nothing had changed, but I still had enough of my sanity to know I wasn't myself anymore.

"_Tim…"_

"Who's there?" I said as I glanced around, looking for the person who had spoken.

"_Tim, what are you doing Tim?"_

Batman stood before me. He glared down at me with such contempt that I wanted to look away, but couldn't. As Dick and Jason joined him on either side, I grew scared. I wanted so badly to believe that Joker had poisoned me with some kind of hallucinogen, but the Joker wouldn't drug me if he could see that I was already losing my grip on my sanity. No doubt he could see what he was doing to me, and he wouldn't "cheat" with the use of drugs when the delusions came of their own volition. It would be funnier to for him to give me a little push and watch me fall and see where I would land.

"_So now you're going to kill again, are you?"_ said Dick derisively. "_You claimed you're not a murderer, yet here you are, contemplating murdering someone else. You just couldn't handle the pressure, could you? I knew you'd snap, like a toothpick."_

"_Bruce made a mistake when he chose you," _sneered Jason. "_You're not even brave enough to die for what you believe in. I died with honor, but you'd rather sacrifice everything you said you believed in so you can live a little longer." _

"Leave me alone!" I yelled as I grasped the sides of my head and pulled my hair. The fact that they weren't real wasn't enough to stop me from shouting at them like a psycho. "I don't know what else to do. No matter what I do I can't win, if you're going to torment me, the least you could do is offer me some advice! Any one of you probably would have figured a way out by now, as you've told me repeatedly, so why don't you help me out here? I beat the Joker, and I don't know what else to do! I'm lost, I can't do this anymore."

I looked to Bruce, who said, "_I believed in you, Tim. I believed you could withstand the Joker's game, I believed you were strong enough to resist the evil and darkness, but I was wrong. I'm sorry I ever let you act as my sidekick. You're one of them now, and you're dead to me."_ He then turned away in shame. That stung worse than anything he or Dick and Jason had said. I wished he would yell at me, but of course he wouldn't, just like the real Bruce wouldn't.

"_Traitor! Fool! Disgrace! Monster! Coward_!" Dick and Jason screamed at me. I couldn't take it anymore. I ran, but no matter how fast I ran or how far away I got they were still there, and I could still hear their voices in my ears.

I was barely paying attention to where I was going, because no matter what direction I ran in everything looked the same, which was why I barreled right into someone. I don't know exactly what happened, except that a few seconds after the collision I found myself on top of the person I had run into, my knife in his shoulder. It was one of the Joker's henchmen, probably sent down here to check the cameras or something. But it didn't matter what he had been doing, what mattered was that I had drawn my knife without even realizing it, and had senselessly stabbed someone for no reason other than being in the wrong place in the wrong time. He would live, he seemed more frightened than hurt, and he pulled the knife out of his shoulder, threw it at me, and fled.

"What's happening to me?" I asked myself in an agonized whisper. I couldn't remember taking out my knife, I couldn't remember stabbing him, yet the evidence was running away from me, screaming in terror. It wasn't like henchmen to be frightened by one person, hero or no, and I wondered what he had seen in my face that had affected him so. I picked up the bloody knife out of the sludge, my hand shaking as I did. I wanted to get rid of it, but at the same time I felt like I needed it, like it was my one companion in this horrid place. I got back on my feet and walked down the long tunnels, my hand tightly gripping the knife like a life preserver. I didn't know where I was going, I had no goal in mind. I didn't care where I went, because it didn't matter anymore. I was working to gather the strength and courage for what I needed to do. I had to kill myself.

I had seen heroes sacrifice themselves in the movies many times, I had seen them show no fear and die for what they believed in, and they made it look so easy. But now that I was being forced to look death in the face and let it take me, I felt debilitating fear and unease. But going through life like one of them was far scarier than death could ever be. I swallowed my fear and stopped walking. I raised the knife and took a deep breath to try to calm my nerves. I held the knife, ready to slit my wrists, when suddenly someone grabbed me, Violet. She grabbed my arm and tried to take my knife away. I wrenched myself out of her grasp.

"Get away from me!" I shouted at her. "Leave me alone, you freak!"

She wouldn't listen. She took a step towards me, and I stepped back. She continued to draw nearer, her face full of pity and compassion, which made me even angrier. She was insane, just like the rest of them, so why did she feel sorry for me? I raised my knife in the air threateningly.

"Leave me! Leave or I'll kill you," I warned. I had no intention of killing her, but maybe I could scare her away so I could get back to business. If I didn't get this over with soon, I would lose my nerve. I had to do it now, while I still could.

She ignored my threat and kept trying to take the knife, so I grabbed her by her hair and slammed her head into the wall. She fell to the floor in the muck, her long, raven black hair obscuring most of her face. I took a deep breath and had been about to try to slit my wrists again when she spoke. "Don't do it, Robin."

The sound of her voice shocked me so much that I forgot I had been about to kill myself. I gaped at her, certain I hadn't heard her speak and that I had imagined it.

"Drop the knife," she commanded, her voice soft and quavering, yet strong.

"You can speak?" I asked her in disbelief.

"I suppose so." Her voice was a high soprano, and a bit raspy from lack of use. It was like soft wind chimes. "Robin, please don't kill yourself. You can't die now, don't do this."

"I'm going mad, just like the rest of you. If I survive, I'll be worse than dead."

"But if you do, the Joker will still blow up those people. He would count suicide as cheating, do you really think the fact that you would be dead and untouchable would stop him from hurting those people?" she said as she rose to her feet.

She was right, how could I have not seen that before? How could I have been so stupid? I dropped the knife and sank to my knees. I was trapped, never before had I felt such a powerful sense of helplessness. My one hope had been sucked out of me, and I was left with nothing to hold on to. I felt myself sliding deeper, felt myself giving into the darkness, the madness, but I had no strength left with which to fight. I was ashamed to admit it, but I gave up.

Then I felt someone take my hand and pull me back to my feet. Violet took hold of my shoulders and looked me in the eye. "I won't let you give up like this," she said, as though she had read my mind. "I'm going to get you out of here, without murdering anyone else. Follow me."

She took off, and I ran alongside her. "Why didn't you ever speak before? I thought you were mute."

"There's no time for that, this is too important and we can't waste any time on idle chatting," she said as she took me by the hand and pulled me faster.

"Then at least tell me why you're helping me. You chose to play this game, yet you're different from the others. Why do you care whether I live or die?"

"Several years ago, you and Batman saved my life. I know that neither of you remember me, but I owe you both, even though neither of you ask for anything in return. I want to repay my debt to you, and this seems like the best way to do it."

"How did I save your life?" I asked her. Before she could respond, out of nowhere, someone suddenly appeared in front of us, blocking the way. We had to stop from running into her. It was Rose.

"Well, well, well. What do we have here?" she said as she pointed her knife at me. "Looks like it's my lucky day."

I studied her face for a brief moment. There was no anger or hatred there like I saw in most everyone else's face, just an eagerness to kill me. She wanted me dead to win the challenge, but more than that, she simply wanted to kill me for the fun of it.

Violet pointed her own knife at her. "Don't touch him, or I won't hesitate to kill you."

Rose's eyebrows rose slightly as she said, "So the Mime has a voice after all. I'm sorry Violet, but Robin's coming with me dead or alive, preferably dead."

"Leave him alone, he's done nothing to you," Violet defended.

"It's okay Violet, stand down," I told her. It felt so weird to have someone else defend me, when it was usually me doing the defending. I didn't want her to try to protect me, but not out of pride. I _wanted_ Rose to kill me, I suddenly realized it was the only solution to all my problems. I guess I had known all along that this was the only way out, I just hadn't wanted to believe it. But now it was staring me dead in the face, there was no more denying it, and I was ready.

"It doesn't matter if he's done anything to me or not, what matters is that I have a challenge to win. Besides, the Joker's finally taken away his protection, and I've been looking forward to this for a long time now," said Rose with a playful grin.

"Make it quick Rose, just get it over with," I said as I faced her.

Her eyes narrowed and she said, "Now you're taking the fun right out of this. I don't expect you to cry and beg for mercy, but aren't you going to at least try to stop me?"

"This is the only way out. This is the only way I can escape this hell without anyone else getting hurt because of me, so just do it, okay?" As I spoke the words, I thought I saw a flash of long blonde hair behind a corner. Other than Rose, there was only one other person in here with golden locks like that.

Violet spoke up and said, "Rose, I saved your life in here. Return the favor by not killing Robin. You owe me your life, fulfill your debt by letting him live."

Rose smirked at Violet and said, "You did save my life, and I'm sure you'll come to regret that decision later on, if you haven't already. Promises and debts don't mean very much to me, you see. But I'll tell you what. Since Robin's being such a spoil sport, I'll let him go, this time. Next time I expect a fight from you, Boy Wonder. Get out of here, before I change my mind."

"Rose wait-" I tried to say, but Violet began pulling me away and Rose disappeared.

"Why did you want her to kill you?" Violet demanded. "You're lucky she's doing this for the sport of it, and not just to win the game. Any of the others would have killed you the second they saw you."

"You don't understand, I need her to kill me. If one of them kills me the Joker will have no reason to kill anyone else because of me. The only way I can leave this place is in a body bag," I tried to explain to her. Why couldn't she just let me go? Why couldn't she understand that I needed to do this, and that she was only prolonging my suffering?

Violet slowed down and released her grip on me. She then reached into her pocket and pulled out a strange-looking metal bracelet. "You are going to get out of here, alive. I won't let you give up. Take this," she said as she handed me the bracelet.

"What is it?"

"About a year ago they brought a man into the asylum who had been lobotomized, but they didn't know who had done it or why. He would only talk about one thing, an undetectable device he had invented that could create impenetrable force-fields. No one ever paid him any attention because he was practically a vegetable, no one except me. It's amazing what you learn when you listen, instead of speak. Anyway, he told me obsessively about how his shield worked, and how someone stole the tech from him, but he couldn't remember who. I've been studying the shield on days between challenges, and I think the Joker stole the technology from him and lobotomized him so he couldn't tell anyone what happened. This bracelet allows the person wearing it to pass through the shield, it's how they got Sharp in here and any other supplies they needed. I pick-pocketed this from the camera guy a few days ago so you could use it to escape. All we have to do is find the edge of the shield and you can go home."

As if she had spoken the magic words, we turned a corner and found the edge of the shield. It was shimmery like a mirage, and it didn't seem nearly strong enough to keep anyone in or out.

"You can leave now, Robin," she said with the ghost of a smile. "You're free now."

"No, no I'm not. I can't leave without people dying, and I will not bear their blood on my hands."

"I don't like this anymore than you do, but Gotham needs you. I don't want to see you hurt anymore, and if you stay you'll be killed. I need to repay this debt, you don't even realize how much I owe you, and I will not stand by and watch you be torn to shreds by those savages. I don't want those people to die either, I'm not insane like the others. I want to help them just like you do, but right now it's you who needs to be saved. You can't just let yourself be killed like this, you can't let Joker win."

"I won't leave, not like this. But you will." I gave her back the bracelet. "Leave Arkham City, we don't both have to die."

"I won't leave you here with them," she said firmly.

"Take the bracelet to Jim Gordon, he can give it to Batman and he might be able to figure out a way to take down the shield. If he can do that then they can put a stop to this demented game and no one else will have to die."

"But Robin-"

"GO!" I screamed at her.

I didn't expect her to agree and thought that I would have to physically force her outside, but she surprised me by reluctantly complying. She was about to leave when she turned back to me, her face set in grim determination, and said, "Don't give in Robin, you're stronger than they are. I believe in you, don't let them break you. Whatever it takes, fight them until you've reached your last breath. Even if you should die, don't let them take away who you are."

She turned back around and stepped through the shield and didn't look back. She broke into a sprint, and I did the same in the opposite direction. I threw away the knife as I felt new strength fill me. There was no hope left for me, but maybe Batman could use the bracelet to break through the shield. I never felt more gratitude towards anyone than I did Violet in that moment. I owed her my life and my sanity, two debts I could never repay.

I ran until I crossed paths with Johnny. "Oh lookey, a little birdie. This reminds me of the time I saved the life of a baby bald eagle, and then later on it came back and saved my life," he lied with a smirk. "Too bad there's no one coming to save your bird butt."

He came at me with his knife, and I dodged and threw him into the wall. I knocked him out like Bruce had trained me to do, so that he would have a bad headache later but nothing serious. I propped him against the sewer wall so that he wouldn't accidentally drown, and continued on.

Only a few short minutes later I ran into Zelda. I knew from experience that Zelda was wilder and deadlier than a tornado, and would be harder to beat than Johnny, who had very little skill in fighting and instead relied on talking his way out of sticky situations. She smiled and tried to stab me in the chest and I moved just in time, but she still managed to slash open the side of my arm. I ignored the pain and continued dodging her attacks.

"Come on Boy Blunder, sooner or later you'll have to fight back," she taunted. "You know, with moves like yours, you'd make a better ballerina than crime-fighter."

"And you're like a bull in a china shop," I retorted. She laughed but her eyes blazed with the need to end me. If I had a dime for every time a thug had given me that particular look, I'd be richer than Bruce.

I had been waiting for an opening, and when it finally came it happened so quickly I almost missed it. Fighting was hard to do in knee-deep sewage, and as Zelda slashed at me with her knife again, she slipped. Not enough to trip her but just enough to allow me to take her down. I grabbed her and wrestled her knife out of her hand and tossed it away. She roared in anger and escaped my hold on her. She then pinned me down and held my head under the sewage to drown me. I tried to fight back, but Zelda had her full weight on me. She was small, but strong and determined too, and all the raw sewage being forced down my throat and blocking out oxygen was beginning to take its toll. I managed to get my head above the disgusting sludge just long enough to take in a breath of air, but she roughly shoved my head back under. I managed to throw her off, but she pounced on my back before I could catch my breath.

"Any last words, Bird Boy?" asked Zelda as she wrapped her arms around my throat, restricting my airway. As I tried to pull her off, someone did it for me. This didn't bring any relief though, because I knew whoever it was had only done it because they wanted me for themselves. Sure enough, I saw Edward, knife in hand, fighting her for my life. It might have been flattering to see two people fighting over the chance to kill me if the circumstances had been different.

"Get away Edward, he's mine!" shouted Zelda. "He was almost dead, let me finish him off!"

"You only think you could have beaten him, but it takes more than brute force and an insane bloodlust to take down the Dark Knight or one of his sidekicks," said Edward as he swung his knife at her. "You really should leave murder to the professionals, Zelda."

As I watched them brawl, I knew one of them would eventually win, and the victor would get to be the one who killed me. Even so, I couldn't go down without a fight. For one thing, I had to make it look like I had given my all for the Joker, but more than that, if I had to die, I wanted to die with what little remained of my dignity intact.

Zelda found an opening and punched Edward in the gut as hard as she could. He doubled over and she ran towards me, and I readied myself for her attack. She threw herself at me with a feral growl and I ducked and stuck out my foot to trip her. She stumbled but didn't fall, and in that time Edward had recovered and he joined our fight. They came at me at the same time, apparently they had changed tactics; they would kill me and then fight over who would get the glory. I kicked Edward in the jaw and socked Zelda in the eye. This only slowed them down for a second, but I took advantage of their momentary weakness by slipping past them and getting into a better position to defend myself. It was only a matter of time now, and I would be dead and out of this nightmare. As I tried to prepare myself to for what was to come, suddenly a white vapor filled the tunnel we were in, I began to cough as the gas filled my lungs. I felt myself begin to lose consciousness, but before I could someone slid a gas mask over my face, supplying me with fresh oxygen as Edward and Zelda both collapsed in the sludge. I went over to them and propped them up so they wouldn't suffocate, and then looked to see who was behind this. I had no idea what was going on, but I was going to find out.

Then I saw them. Harley Quinn flanked by two burly henchmen on either side, all of them wearing gas masks.

"Turn off the cameras, boys!" Harley shouted at the ceiling. "Don't turn 'em on again until I give the signal."

"What are you doing here?" I asked. "I thought the Joker was going to let the other players kill me."

"Like Mistah J would really let ya off that easy. Actually, he was gonna let ya go, he really was, but you just wouldn't play along," said Harley as she shook her head. "You had a chance, a real chance, to get out of here safe and sound, but you wouldn't take it. All ya had to do was kill one person and you woulda been home-free, but I guess that was too hard for ya. You and the rest of the Bat family just love torturing yourselves, don't you?"

"Why are you here, and not him?"

"He was gonna come, but I volunteered to get you myself and made him stay put. This place is revolting, and I wouldn't want my Puddin' to ruin his best suit for the likes of you. He and I got a real kick out of it when you started talkin' to yourself and to your imaginary bat-friends, it was really cute, we couldn't breathe."

"What are you going to do to me?" I asked. I had no energy left to fight her off, and even if I did it wouldn't matter. "Are you going to kill me?"

"Oh please, you wish he would make things that easy for ya. Ya see, Mistah J promised B-man that he wouldn't kill ya, and my Puddin' is a man of his word. But the thing is, he never said anything 'bout lettin' you go or makin' your stay comfortable. Mistah J's grown tired of tormenting you by makin' ya play the game, so we're gonna have fun in a different way. Trust me, by the time we're through with you you'll wish you'd given up on your one rule and killed someone and escaped while ya still could. But you're gonna love your playhouse, Mistah J designed it himself. Oh, the fun you'll have in there, I can't wait to see the look on your face when you see all the cool toys. Mistah J will be doin' most of the playin of course, but maybe he'll let you play with them sometimes, if you behave yourself that is. B-man will just plotz when he sees you after we're threw with you, you'll be a new birdie-boy!"

Fear and resignation flooded through me as her words sunk in. They weren't going to kill me. I could only imagine what they had in store for me now. I swallowed my fear and forced myself not to run as Harley whipped out her hammer. She hit me once, knocking me into the sewage as pain surged through me. Just before I blacked out I heard her say, "Nighty-night Chuckles! It's too bad you won't be in the runnin' for my Puddin's apprentice anymore, but then again you could always make a comeback as his mascot!"

I didn't try to resist the waves of darkness that washed over me. Just before I lost all awareness, I saw Bruce, staring at me with contempt and disappointment. "I'm sorry," I tried to say, but no words came out. I felt myself being lifted up by one of the henchmen, and braced myself for the new hell I was about to enter.

**~Rose's POV~**

Not long after I let Robin go I was found by a hench-girl who took me back to the surface. By the look on her face, she really didn't want to be in the sewer, but did what she was told. She then escorted me back to the house, and told me to go to the auditorium. I asked if I could take a shower first, but she only glared at me and told me that I could shower after the ceremony. Once there, I found that everyone else was already there waiting, and by the looks on their faces, they weren't very happy to see me.

"So Roza," said Zelda as I sat next to her on the bench on the stage. "Jess-Belle's been telling us something very interesting."

"A little bird told me that you let another little birdie go," said Jess-Belle as she absently examined her nails.

"Yeah, I did," I confessed, wondering how she could have known that. But that also meant that none of them had caught him either, and so he had escaped and had gone, running and crying, back to Batman. I wondered where Mime was, but didn't care enough to try to find out.

"Why would you do that?" asked Johnny, completely bemused. "We all wanted Robin's head, and you had a golden opportunity to get it, but you just waved as it passed by."

"I had a reason for letting him go, you know," I said.

"Do tell," said Edward, eyes narrowed. Of all of them he seemed to be the most outraged.

"It wouldn't have been right for me to kill him that way." I thought back to the way he had looked as I had been about to kill him. In that moment, I just couldn't bring myself to do it, despite having wanted to for so long. He wasn't even going to put up a fight, and so there would have been no point. I couldn't just stab him, because then who would I play with? No one else could keep up with me like he could. Only when I was done playing with him, and only when I could give him the death he deserved, would I kill him.

"What kind of excuse is that?" said Zelda. "Just admit it, you have a crush on the Boy Blunder."

"Yeah you're right, I'm head over heels in love with Bird Boy, I've been found out," I said sarcastically. If I had known this was the conclusion they'd come to, I would have just killed Robin and have done with it. I noticed pain flash across Edward's face, and realized he believed that I had feelings for Robin. "Look, you really want to know why I let him go? Because the way the Joker had it set up it would have been an empty victory. It would have been hollow and pointless."

"Right, because we're all here for the fun and games. It's not a matter of life and death or anything" said Edward, his expression darkening.

I had been about to fire back a retort when the Joker entered the stage, followed by the same cameraman as always. The Joker was smiling his usual smile as he said, "Well children, it seems you are all incapable of catching birdies. The odds were six to one and he somehow eluded all of you, and took the Mime with him. Even though we lost two players today, technically no one croaked so we're still going to have an elimination ceremony," he said as he gestured to the Wheel. "Cast your votes, kids!"

I chose to vote for Jess-Belle. I thought about voting for Zelda for insinuating the absurd notion that I had feelings for Robin, but since I was on better terms with her than Jess-Belle I decided to vote for her instead. A henchman passed around the hat and I put my vote in, and the Joker began to count the votes.

"And tonight's loser is… the Marionette!" he announced.

I felt numb as he said my name. Of course they had voted for me, I knew they would, because I would have done the same thing in their place. The same henchman that had collected the votes tried to lead me to the Joker but I resisted his efforts and made my way down without him, my head held high. So Harley had been right after all. I guess I wasn't meant to win, but I hadn't known it until now.

I walked past the Joker and spun the Wheel. I watched it go round and round, slowly deciding how I would go. As it began to slow down, I saw ways to die such as poison, freezing, being eaten by insects, etc. One option had a picture of a pencil, and I wondered how exactly the Joker would use that. The Wheel finally stopped and landed on, of all things, boiling in oil.

"I was wondering when someone was going to get that one," Joker said gleefully. He pressed a button on the wall and the floor opened up to reveal a pit of bubbling oil at my feet. "The oil looks nice and warm today, perfect for a swim! So Marionette, will you jump in willingly or do I need to give you a gentle nudge in the right direction?" asked Joker.

"Neither," I said as I drew my knife and lunged at him. I might not have been destined to become the Joker's apprentice, but there was no way I was going down without a fight.

"Oh, you wanna play, do you?" asked the Joker with a playful grin as he pulled out a knife of his own. I slashed at him but he dodged and made a deep cut near my eye. As blood ran down my cheek, instead of ignoring the pain, I used it to propel myself forward and to fight harder. I dodged his attacks as he dodged mine, it was almost like we were dancing. I noticed the Joker and I were the same in our fighting styles somewhat; we both lacked muscle but made up for it with speed and cunning, which made it more difficult for both of us to gain the upperhand, but the Joker had experience on his side. He got in several hits, slicing me open and jabbing me in different places, but I moved too quickly for him to sever anything important. I got in a few good hits as well, and found myself truly enjoying our match. He was the only person besides Robin that was a worthy match for me, and I didn't want our fight to end. I had to work harder than he did to avoid his attacks and get my own in, but I was nothing if not persistent. I feinted to the left and sliced open the side of his suit and left a cut in his side, but the pain only seemed to invigorate him, almost like a high. I came at him again and sliced open his knee, but he took advantage of the opening I had given him when I had cut him and grabbed me and held his knife to my throat. I decided to ignore the knife since I was marked for death anyway and struggled to escape his hold, but he only laughed at my attempts. He grabbed my knife and tossed it behind him, and so I wrapped my hands around his throat to try to strangle him. He pressed his knife deeper into my half-healed throat, causing me much pain and drawing blood and looked me in the eye as his eyes lit up in a different way than usual, and his mischievous grin widened as he gasped for air.

"You know kid, I really ought to kill you, but I don't think I will," he wheezed with a giggle. "After all, how could I ever live with myself if I killed someone as fun as you?"

His words startled me so much that I almost didn't comprehend them. He was going to let me live, even though it was my turn to die? He released his hold on me as the others loudly voiced their outrage at his decision. I let go of his throat and gaped at him, surely it had to be some kind of trick.

"But if I'm going to let you live, someone else must die in your place. Got to keep the fans entertained, and boy, are they hard to please. Our victim tonight will be, that guy working the camera!"

The cameraman looked like a deer in the headlights for a few seconds, his fear obvious despite the clown mask he wore hiding his face. He then dropped the camera and bolted, but a few other henchmen caught him and dragged him back screaming.

"Oh come now, mister camera guy, don't pretend you didn't see this coming," said Joker as he put his arm around the man's shoulder. "Your camera work has been shoddy at best, the unmanned cameras pick up better footage than you. I could steal a chimp from the zoo and make it film me and it would do a far better job than you could ever hope to do, in fact I might just do that. But not just that, because of you people were able to escape, and if there's something I do not tolerate, it's ignorance. Unless it's Harley of course, don't ask me why I put up with her. May your replacement be more skilled in the art of filming than you, my good man, though that's not asking much."

And with that, the Joker shoved the trembling man into the pit of oil. He screamed as he flailed in the oil, his entire body being boiled right before our eyes. He tried to escape, but began to sink as his skin was destroyed by the scalding liquid. He finally gave up after a few minutes and sank below the oil, no longer recognizable as human.

"I've been wanting to kill that guy for a long time now, now all I need to do is kill the guy who forgot to bring me my newspaper this morning," said Joker with a pleased grin on his face. "Now that that's settled, I have places to be. I would join you for dinner, but I'll be entertaining a very _special_ someone for dinner tonight. Go stuff your faces, I hear Cookie and Harley are making some kind of pie for dinner."

The Joker left the stage one way and we left it another. The pie turned out to be chocolate, and actually wasn't that bad for once. Either Harley was improving, or Cookie was losing his edge.

After dinner I went straight to bed to be away from everyone else. They were all furious that I had been allowed to live, and they were all wondering if they could get out of death the same way I had. I assumed it was a one-time thing, that the Joker had done it to shake things up for the audience and to make the others mad, and that he would have done it for whoever got the boot on that particular day. But I couldn't help but wonder if it was that, or if the Joker had been telling the truth, that he didn't want to get rid of me just yet.

When I climbed in bed, on my pillow I found a headless marionette doll that was the spitting image of me, and was wearing a miniature version of my costume. Pinned to its dress was a note.

_Just so we're clear, you just used up your one and only get out of jail free card. No more freebies, next time you'll have to face the consequences like everyone else. I suggest you take advantage of the mercy I showed you tonight and don't slip up again, because next time I won't be so forgiving. –J_

Now I was really confused. Why had the Joker let me live? It almost seemed like he wanted me to win, but Harley had told me otherwise. I decided I would talk to him about it tomorrow. I needed to know why the Joker had shown me mercy when he had denied it to everyone else. I needed to know why he had chosen me.

_**Author's Note:**__ Now that we're to the top five, I'm wondering what your opinions are of the contestants. If you could pick any one of them to win, living or dead, who would you choose? Which characters were you happy to see go? Which ones do you love or hate, and why? I'm extremely curious as to your opinions about the characters I created for this story, and I love hearing from you._


	18. Chapter 18

The next day I tried to pay the Joker a visit, but none of the henches would tell me which room was his, saying he was "busy" and to "screw off". In fact, for two weeks there were no challenges and I didn't see him at all, only Harley. I thought about asking her if she could take me to Joker, but realized that she would think I wanted to see him for romantic reasons and would either ignore me completely or take my head off with her hammer. She had killed another hench-girl for just that reason, and I didn't need to end up on her hit list. I could have taken her, of course, but she did have that immunity booster Ivy had given her which made her stronger than most people, and my chances of coming out a fight with her alive were reduced because of that. I would have taken her on anyway, but I was so close to the finale and I didn't want to risk something stupid like a broken leg or a broken neck that would make winning more difficult than it needed to be.

I had been playing ping pong with Johnny in the arcade when out of nowhere a large group of henchmen ambushed us. They put a sack over my head and when I tried to fight back they stuck a needle in my arm, and the world faded away.

xxxx

When I awoke, I found myself chained to a wall by several hooks. They were hooked into the skin of my arms and legs, and I could feel one in my back. The hooks didn't hurt until I tried to move, and the second I tried to move a voice spoke over the intercom.

"Oh goodie, you're up early!" said Joker gleefully. "You must be eager to begin your challenge, and so am I. Today's challenge will test your ability to survive in a pinch. You'll have to complete a few tasks to complete the challenge. These tasks are designed to test how far you'll go to survive, if you have what it takes to ignore the pain and do what you have to to live another day and not wimp out like a pansy. I'm pretty sure there was a movie based on a similar concept. The name escapes me at the moment, but I'm pretty sure it was a romantic comedy. Anyway, if your survival instincts are in good shape these challenges should be nothing more than little obstacles, but if they're not… well, let's just say we probably won't need to hold an elimination ceremony tonight, will we? Oh and by the way, to make things more interesting, there's a collar around your neck that will contract as time passes, and in half an hour, when every breath takes great effort, it will contract so much and so fast that your head will pop off! I suppose it is _overkill_," he chuckled. "but like I always say, if it feels good, do it. So what's it going to be Marionette? Do you have what it takes to survive? I guess we'll see in thirty minutes, won't we?"

As his voice cut off I felt the collar constrict ever so slightly, not enough to inhibit breathing but enough to serve as a warning. I scanned the room with my eyes and found it empty. There was a door before me that had the words written out in what appeared to be blood: _This way!_

To free myself from the hooks I would have to rip them out of my skin, and quickly. They weren't in deep, so I could do it without causing much damage. I took a deep breath and yanked as hard as I could with on the hook in my burned arm and the hook came out, and I had to bite my lip hard to keep from crying out. I looked down at my arm, which had been healing pretty well, and saw that it was now missing a chunk of skin and blood was oozing out. I braced myself and took hold of the hook in my other arm and pulled it out, this time taking less skin but with no less pain. I then gripped the hooks in my legs and yanked them out at the same time, and that time I couldn't stop myself from crying out as tears brimmed at my eyes. Now I only had to pull out the one in my back. I reached back and pulled on it, but it didn't budge; it was in deeper than the others had been. Gritting my teeth, I took hold of it with both hands and pulled on it with all my strength, but that hook did not want to come out. Still gripping the hook, I lurched forward and used my whole body to pull away from the hook, and finally it came out and I was free, but not without sending waves of pain throughout my body. Before I left through the door, I took a minute to catch my breath and to recover from the pain.

I left the room behind, and found myself standing before two men hanging from chains on the wall, both already dead. Beyond them was a sealed door, and on the walls were several jars with some kind of green liquid inside them. I felt the collar contract again, making it a bit harder to breathe. Over the door was a timer, and according to it, I had only twenty minutes left.

"So you made it to part two, eh? Not that part one was all that difficult," said Joker from the intercom again. "For part two, as you can see there are two men before you; one is your best friend, the other is your enemy. One has a key in his stomach, the other does not. In thirty seconds the bombs around you will go off, showering you in an acid that becomes corrosive when it hits the air. You must guess which man is hiding the key and cut it out of him and get out before the bombs go off. I know, I know, this part of the challenge is more luck and chance than survival skills, but isn't that how it usually is in real life?" he chuckled.

As he finished speaking, the door behind me slammed shut, and I pulled out my knife as I tried to decide which man was the right one. I went to each and pulled up their shirts to see if either had any signs of having had a key surgically implanted in their guts, but neither one did, meaning one had been forced to swallow the key.

There was no way for me to calculate which had the key, and there was no riddle to solve, but even if there had been I wouldn't have had time to figure it out. I threw my hands in the air and stabbed the guy on the left in the gut again and again with my knife until I reached his stomach. I cut it open and dug around in his guts with my bare hands for the key, getting horrible-smelling blood and gore all over myself in the process, and was pleasantly surprised and relieved when I found the key. I dashed to the door and unlocked it and escaped just as the bombs went off, disintegrating the bodies behind me.

Any normal person in this situation would be freaking out right now after doing what I had just done, but I was calm and collected. The blood and gore didn't bother me at all, if it weren't for the smell I would have forgotten it was even there. I wasn't handling this at all like I should have been, but when had I ever behaved or thought like a normal person?

The third room was completely bare save for a very large tank of some kind and another door. Before I could take a closer look at the tank, I heard Joker's voice again.

"Ooh, your lucky stars must be smiling on you today Marionette, because you've reached the final part of your challenge. That went by fast, didn't it? Before you is a fish tank with the key to your collar in it. All you have to do is reach in and grab it, and if you can find it you're home free! Easy right? You only have a few minutes though, so be quick about it!"

I walked over to the tank and found that it was made so that it was impossible to see what was inside. There were two holes on top big enough for me to put my arms in, but when I looked down them to try to see what was inside the tank I could still see nothing. Obviously this challenge wasn't going to be as easy as the Joker had made it sound, and I would have been a fool to expect it to be. I slipped my arms in and felt a cool liquid. I had expected it to be acid, so when it didn't burn my skin I was surprised. I began to feel around for the key and was startled when I felt something brush against my hand and a sharp, stinging pain. A few seconds later I felt my arms being attacked. I ripped my arms out of the tank and saw several tiny bite marks oozing blood.

"Oh, did I forget to mention the piranhas? You know, I tried to make them smile for you by giving them some of my Joker venom, but even though it works on most fish I couldn't get so much as a grin from them. That's why they're hidden, so that their sad little frowns won't rain on your parade. A bite or two from them never hurt anyone, but hundreds of little mouths tearing away at your flesh can quickly become a big problem. Just keep calm, don't lose your head," he giggled.

Piranhas, I could deal with piranhas, right? It was that or decapitation, after all. I shoved my hands back into the water and felt them instantly begin feasting on my flesh, as thought they had been waiting for me. I searched frantically for the key as the pain I had been feeling before reached an almost unbearable level as they feasted on my flesh. I wanted to stop, I'd suffered enough through these challenges, but I knew I couldn't stop now, not after I'll I'd been through. I refused to let myself die simply because I couldn't stand a little pain. I kept feeling for the key, this time channeling my pain and using it to give myself strength, like I had when I had fought Joker. I was improving, pretty soon pain would no longer have any power over me. If this game had taught me anything, it was how to deal with deterrents and not let them get in the way of winning. As I felt around for the key and they ripped my flesh away, the pain actually seemed to become pleasant in its own way. It still hurt, but in a way it felt good, invigorating. I was nervous about the time limit and nearly let out a cry of joy when I finally found the key. I pulled my ravaged arms out of the water and quickly tried to unlock my collar with it, but my hands were so slick and shaky that I dropped it a few times. I finally managed to unlock it just as it contracted so much that it would have killed me.

I looked down at my arms and hands. Most of skin had been ripped off, but there were still shreds of it here and there. I saw that muscle and tissue had been eaten away too, not enough to cause permanent damage, but enough to cause me to lose a lot of blood if not treated right away. Blood dripped to the floor, a small puddle began to form at my feet. The door before me opened and I left the room, glad to be out of there. The door led back to the infirmary, where I saw Zelda holding a bloodied cloth over her right eye and a group of five hench-ladies assisting her. There were about twenty-five hench-girls were in there, twenty of which were standing, waiting.

"Wow, you look awful," said Zelda as she tilted her head at me.

Five clown-girls came over to me and began trying to staunch the flow of blood flowing from my arms and hands. I felt a bit light-headed from the blood loss, but I still had my wits about me. I wondered if any of these women had any medical training, or if they had just watched a lot of medical TV programs and only _thought_ they knew what to do. The Joker wouldn't care either way.

"You're not looking much better," I retorted.

She grinned and pulled the cloth away from her eye, revealing an empty eye-socket. "True, but this'll make for a great story after I win."

"What happened?" I asked, taken aback by her wound.

"The key was behind my eye, I had to cut it out to get to it. At least now I have an excuse to wear an eye-patch. Actually, I might just go around and let everyone see this baby for what it is. It certainly would get people's attention."

Just then, someone staggered weakly into the room, having a hard time standing on their own two feet. I assumed it was Edward, but it was hard to tell because he was completely covered in some kind of awful smelling whitish gray substance, and the top of his head was bleeding profusely.

"Did you go rolling around in bird poop or something?" asked Zelda as she pinched her nose shut and pressed the cloth back to her eye.

Edward dropped into a chair and grabbed a towel and wiped his face and said breathlessly, "The Joker made me swim in a huge pool of liquefied animal parts, mostly cow and pig. But first I woke up in a contraption that nearly castrated me," he shuddered visibly as he said this, "and for the final part of the challenge I had to let another contraption scalp me, all for a stupid challenge." Five hench-girls ran over to him and tried to stop the bleeding from his now skinless head while some of them attempted to clean him up. Despite the terrible smell, they probably preferred treating him to Zelda and I.

"Wow, you must have really gotten on J's bad side to have earned that first one," said Zelda as she exchanged her bloody cloth for a clean one.

"Oh please, like he's ever needed a reason to do anything," said Edward with a roll of his eyes as he wiped down the rest of his body, but the odor remained. "But it is like he's singled me out for some reason, like I'm his personal punching bag."

"Don't give yourself that much credit, Ed, you're not that special," I said with a grin.

"Besides, that's Harley's job," added Zelda.

Jess-Belle came through a door then, her entire body covered in cuts and scratches of various sizes, some deeper than others. Even her faces was deeply scratched. Five more of the hench-girls went over to her to help her take care of her wounds, while the remaining five stayed where they were. Apparently the Joker had prepared five hench-girls for each of us, and the ones remaining were waiting for Johnny.

"What did you have to do?" Edward asked Jess-Belle.

"I had to navigate through a maze of razor wire to find my key. Look at me, I look terrible! These will scar horribly, it'll take surgery to remove them!" she wailed.

"You poor thing. You know Jess-Belle, I wish I loved anything as much as you love being pretty," I said dryly. She responded with a "Hmph!" and turned away with her nose in the air.

"I wonder where Johnny is, no matter what he had to go through no doubt he'll say something different happened." said Zelda. "He'll probably claim he had to wrestle Elvis, or something like that."

At that moment, the Joker came through the door, and in his arms was a colorfully wrapped gift with a bright red bow on top. He set it on a table and smiled at all of us. "Well done kids, you all showed today that you have what it takes to survive in a pinch. You'll all be pleased to know that the Wheel will not be necessary tonight." As he said this, he undid the bow and the box opened, and out rolled Johnny's disembodied head. It rolled off the table and landed at Edward's feet, causing him to step back in disgust.

"What was Johnny's challenge? What part did he die in?" I asked, taken aback by his death. I had considered him to be a good friend, I had been about as close to him as I could get to anyone.

"He made it to the final part of the challenge, and all he had to do was cut off his own arm to pass, but apparently he has, excuse me, _had_, a very low tolerance for pain. That or he just really liked that arm. Whichever it was, in the end Johnny not only lost his arm, he had to part with his entire body. For shame. But anyhoo, you kids get your boo-boos taken care of." He addressed the camera being held by the new camera-girl, "We're getting close to the finale folks, tune in next time 'cause you won't want to miss a single second of what's to come!"

The Joker signaled for the clown-girl to turn off the camera and then he exited the room whistling some made up tune.

It took a while to stop my arms bleeding. My new wounds had initially hurt almost as much as my burn had, but the pain had slowly lessened until it was a dull throb. My arms looked frightening; anyone with a weak stomach would have thrown up at the sight. We were all in bad shape, but the hench-girls did their best to treat us and assured us that we would all make it and do just fine in the challenges to come. I didn't know if they were right or not, but it's not like we had a real doctor, or the choice of sitting out challenges until we'd fully healed. I cleaned them and bandaged them up as best as I could and then went to the showers with everyone else. Washing off the blood and gore while keeping the bandages from getting wet was nearly impossible, and in the end I just gave up and let them get wet and then reapplied them after I got out. It was late and I was exhausted, from the challenge and the fact that I had slept a total of four hours in the past three days, so I went back to the girl's dorm, as did Jess-Belle and Zelda.

"It's not fair," said Zelda randomly from her bed.

"What's not fair?" I asked as I stared up at the ceiling, barely paying any attention to her.

"Edward gets the guy's dorm all to himself now, while I'm still forced to share with you two. Life isn't fair at all."

"Don't get any ideas," I said, remembering our first night sharing a room at the asylum.

"Oh, it is far too late for that," she retorted.

I had been deliberating since the end of the challenge if I should confront the Joker about his decision to not kill me a few days ago. I knew it would probably be best to just accept the gift and forget about it, but I just couldn't let it go.

"Where are you going?" asked Zelda as I climbed out of bed and headed for the door.

"To talk to the Joker."

Zelda and Jess-Belle both stared at me as though I'd just sprouted wings or extra limbs. "Why on earth would you do that?" Zelda asked.

"He let me live when I was supposed to die in the last challenge, and I'm curious as to why," I replied simply.

"Good idea Rose, you have every right to know why you were spared," said Jess-Belle.

I knew she was just egging me on because she figured the Joker would kill me, but I didn't let that stop me.

"Your funeral," said Zelda with a shrug.

I left the room and went to look for a henchman, anyone who was working for Joker. I had no idea where the man was staying, so I needed directions. Fortunately, it didn't take very long. I found a guy who seemed to be about my age, though it was hard to tell behind the mask. All I could tell about his appearance was that he had curly red hair.

"Hi, I'm Rose," I said after I'd stopped him. "I was wondering if you could show me where the Joker's room is?"

"Um, I'm not supposed to give out that information to contestants. Joker and Harley don't want you guys bothering them." By the sound of his voice, he couldn't have been much older than me.

"Uh huh," I said. I noticed how flustered he sounded, and decided to ramp up the charm and act flirtatious. I had mastered the act of charm as a kid, and even though it hardly ever worked on the nuns, it worked on practically everyone else, not that I used it very often. I twirled a lock of hair in my fingers and put on puppy-dog eyes as I said, "Please, just this once? I'll tell Joker I found his room on my own, you won't get into any trouble, I swear. No one will ever have to know, it'll be our little secret."

He gulped and said, "Okay, f-follow me."

He took me up a flight of stairs to an ordinary looking oak door. On the door hung a sign that read _do not disturb_, and had a poorly drawn picture of a bunch of people being hung, some of them upside down.

"This is it," he said nervously. "I gotta go, please don't rat me out."

"Wouldn't dream of it," I assured him.

As he scurried off, I knocked on the door but got no answer. I knocked again, louder this time, but still no one answered. Determined, I quietly opened the door and snuck in, knowing full well that this was probably the stupidest and most dangerous thing I had ever done, more dangerous than all of the past challenges combined. I could hear a television blaring, and it must have been why they hadn't heard me knock. The way the room was constructed, I could hide undetected and overhear their conversation. I didn't mean to eavesdrop, but I wasn't sure how to introduce myself into the room without being shot on the spot, so while I deliberated on what to do I listened to them talk.

"But where would I go, Puddin?" asked Harley, in her pajamas and without her face paint, her hair done up in pigtails like mine. I peeked and saw that they were sitting at a little table playing checkers, and that Harley was losing miserably.

"The location isn't important, Pooh, because you'll still be in Arkham City," said Joker calmly. I stole another quick glance just as he made an elaborate move and took two of her pawns and one of her kings. "And you'll be back just in time for the final challenge."

"But why are you sending me away? Don't you want me here with you?" she asked.

"Of course I do, Pumpkin Pie, it's just that Daddy has important business that needs to be done. Think of it as a mini vacation, you have been so stressed lately." His words were overloaded with syrupy sweetness.

"You noticed? I'm so sorry Puddin', I tried not to show it, honest I did."

"Well you should have tried harder," his voice condescending. "I know what's bothering you, and you need to stop it now. I'm tired of you moping around all the time, and over this of all things."

"I'm sorry Sweetie, but I can't help it. This just means so much to me-"

"Does it mean more to you than me?" he asked, his voice a deathly whisper.

"N-No Puddin, of course not-"

"Really? Because you're certainly acting like it. All this griping and whining all the time, all because you're afraid you won't like the winner. You beg and plead and cry for something and when I finally give it to you, you reject it like a spoiled child. It's stupid Harley, and I'm sick of it."

"It's not stupid to me," she said in a voice meant to sound strong.

I heard a slap and a crashing sound. I stole another peek and saw that the table had been turned over and Harley was on the ground, with Joker towering over her angrily. Checker pieces were strewn all over the floor as he yelled down at her, "You're lucky I'm even letting you stay in Arkham City after your behavior over the past few weeks, especially the capture the flag challenge. You should be thanking me for everything I've done for you, but you think I'm the bad guy here. You've always trusted me with everything before, why not this?"

"It's not that I don't trust ya Puddin', it's just that, well, this is so important to me and I want to make sure everything turns out okay, ya know?" she asked, her tone tinged with fear.

"And you think it's not important to me, too? Do you really think I would have gone to such great lengths, done all of this, if I didn't care? Really Harley, you are the most obtuse human being on the entire planet."

"I never said I thought ya don't care," she said quietly. Her voice no longer held any fear, only love, pure and simple. "I know you do, I know you care about this a lot more than you show on the outside, and I'm sorry if I made you think I didn't realize that."

There was a pause, then I heard him punch her and she cried out in pain. Just then, the door opened and a henchman burst in. "Joker, we have everything set up for the next challenge… is this a bad time?"

I glanced in and saw that Joker had Harley pressed against the wall. He had just rammed her face into the wall, and he was holding her by one of her pigtails and had his fist reared back, ready to land a hard blow on her already bruised face. Before I could hide again I was spotted.

"Mari, what are you doin' here?" asked Harley, her face reddening in embarrassment. "How much did you hear?"

"Nothing," I lied as I came into the room. "I followed the henchman because I wanted a word with Joker, if that's okay."

For a moment the Joker just stared at me without moving, his expression still furious, and I knew that I was dead. But then he released Harley and pulled on a rope hanging from the ceiling, and the floor opened up where the henchman stood, and he fell screaming until I heard a sickening, bone-crushing splat from below. The Joker let go of the rope and the hole in the floor closed as he said, "I knew that would come in handy someday. Harley, leave us."

"But Mistah J-"

"You know how rude it is to turn away guests, my dear. She asked to speak with me, not you. Marionette and I will only be a minute," he said as he shot her a dangerous look.

"Okay," said Harley, a bit dejectedly. She left the room, but not before casting me a warning glare.

The Joker's furious expression was replaced with one of delight as he set the table back upright and sat down. He gestured for me to join him, and as I did so, I took in the room around me. It wasn't at all like I had expected. I had expected the room to be extravagant, with every luxury and comfort you could think of. But instead it was just a large room with a king-sized bed and an open window. There was also a big TV playing Looney Tunes and another table haphazardly stacked with paper with scribbles all over them. It was as if the Joker didn't care where or how he lived, and I guess he really didn't. I noticed on the wall were many drawings done with crayon. One drawing that caught my eye had stick-figure Joker and Harley holding hands. Batman was also there, and he was being burned at the stake. But the thing that really got my attention was a drawing of a little boy and girl standing by Joker and Harley's side, both dressed to look like them. It was very curious, but I would have to wait until later to think about that.

"So Snow, to what do I owe the pleasure?" he asked as he crossed his legs.

For a moment I didn't know what to say, wasn't sure how to ask him the question that had been driving me crazy. I guess it was because I hadn't expected this conversation to actually happen, certainly not like this anyway. "I wanted to ask you… why you didn't kill me after the last challenge."

He raised an eyebrow and said, "Did you want me to kill you?"

"No, no, of course not. I'm just wondering why you didn't kill me when it was my time. You never hesitated to kill any of the others."

"None of them were worth sparing."

"But why was I worth sparing? I mean, I let Robin go. Didn't I have more reason than the others to die?"

"Depends on why you did it. Why did you let him go?" he asked curiously.

"Because it would have been too easy. Unless he made the decision to kill us, there was no way he could have escaped. If you had released him into Gotham, where he would have had a real chance and could have been a more worthy opponent, I wouldn't have hesitated like I did. If I had killed him it would have dealt a great blow to Batman and the rest of Gotham and given me higher status in the underworld, but there would be no point if it wasn't a challenge. If I'm going to kill him or anyone like him, I want to make it something Gotham will never forget, even though he's just Batman's puny sidekick."

His expression broke into one of pure satisfaction as he said, "And that's why I had to let you live. None of the others understood that. They just wanted to kill him like savages, they didn't care in the slightest how it was done, they don't care about pleasing their audience. They make terrible showmen, I'll tell you that, even Jess-Belle, she performs for a living and should understand that already. You're one of a kind Snow, I couldn't just get rid of you like that. Though I trust you'll take advantage of my generous gift by not getting yourself eliminated again, because I won't spare you twice, great show woman or no," he warned with a smirk.

"By the way, I was wondering about something else, too. Harley mentioned a while back that you've already picked out a winner. Is that true?" I hoped I wouldn't be getting Harley in trouble by asking this, but I had to know.

"What, I can't play favorites?" he asked with a grin.

"I'm just wondering if you're rigging the challenges for this person."

"Oh, don't insult me, kid. Even if I did have a favorite, do you really think I'd make things any easier just for that person? No, every one of you is challenged just as much as the others, it's more fun that way for me. Why do you ask?"

"Well, Harley pretty much said it wasn't me, and that I was doomed to die."

"Did she now? Harley thinks she has everything in the world figured out, which is why she's been such a pain lately. Don't you worry your pretty little head, just don't die and you should be fine."

"Thanks, that makes me feel so much better," I said, which made him laugh.

"Well Snow, as much as I've enjoyed our little talk, and I really have, I'm afraid you must go back to bed before Harley breaks down the door. No doubt she's been listening to every word we've said," said Joker as he rose from his seat and I did likewise. He showed me to the door where, sure enough, Harley was standing, waiting and fidgeting.

"What was that about?" she asked him with a failed attempt at nonchalance.

"Just a friendly chat Harl, yeesh. Now, about your mini vacation…"

They went inside and closed the door, and I was left to ponder all I had seen and heard.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Author's Note:<strong>__ We're getting closer to the end now, and in the next chapter we'll be learning more about Rose's past, and exploring the events in her life that molded her into what she is now. Not every question will be answered, but you will be getting a lot closer to the truth. _


	19. Chapter 19

It had been three days since our last challenge, and Harley had been nowhere to be seen, so she must have gone on that "mini vacation" the Joker had been talking about. Because of that the food suffered more than usual, and so did Joker, funnily enough.

"Where's the hench-girl that's supposed to be doing the laundry? How can I be expected to host a decent show if I don't look my best?" I heard him bellowing from the halls during breakfast.

"I-I don't know boss, we g-gotta a lot of hench-gi-girls-"

"And you're in charge of them, which makes it your responsibility when things don't get done! If you can't get me clean, matching socks in under five minutes I'll find a new head hench-girl and post your head on a stake, got it?"

"Yessir! R-Right away sir!"

"I swear, every time that woman takes off she takes all my socks with her," he grumbled.

I laughed quietly to myself and finished my breakfast. My wounds from the last challenge, while far from perfect, were healing quite well. I'd always been a fast healer, and after just three days the skin on my arms was already growing back rather nicely, and the pain had gone down considerably. The effects of the blood loss were also disappearing, and I was feeling more like myself already.

The same could not be said for the others, though. Edward and Jess-Belle and Zelda were all still a little wobbly on their feet from the blood loss, and with the exception of Zelda, their wounds brought as much pain as they had when they'd first been inflicted. I had watched Edward remove his head bandages yesterday, and the sight would have made anyone else throw up. The wound was beginning to fester, and so the hench-girls had had to clean the wound again, and he somehow managed to not scream from the horrific pain. Jess-Belle would not stop complaining about her damaged looks, she spent nearly every waking moment staring at a mirror whining about how ugly she now was. It was wonder no one killed her out of annoyance. But Zelda was the complete opposite of her, and seemed to be recuperating the best of all of them, despite the loss of her eye. She refused to wear anything to cover it up and showed it off proudly, making some of the henches sick and scaring others. It showed how bold and crazy she was, and in her mind it was like her disfiguring wound made her the most beautiful girl in the world.

In short, none of us were in peak condition, but at least we were in good enough condition to take on the Joker's next challenge, whatever it would be.

The Joker exploded into the room in only his polka-dot underwear, seething with rage. Cookie had prepared for him smiley-faced waffles, hash browns, bacon, cinnamon toast, and chocolate pop-tarts. For us he had re-heated leftovers from the garbage from several nights before, but if I was him, I probably would have done the same thing. Joker took his food without a word and stalked out of the room, muttering to himself angrily.

"Someone's in a bad mood today," said Jess-Belle. "If I didn't know better I'd say he misses her."

"I don't think all his henchman and hench-ladies combined could take care of him like she does," I said.

"You never realize what you have until it's gone," said Edward with a pointed look at me. "Jess-Belle, Zelda, could Rose and I have a minute?"

They looked at each other then back at us, as if considering whether or not they were interested in doing him this favor.

"Fine, I was finished eating anyway," said Jess-Belle as she stood to dump her half-eaten plate.

"Can you feel the love tonight?" said Zelda with a smirk as the two of them left the room. After the door closed, I knew they were still there. Zelda would have her ear against the door listening in, and Jess-Belle would pretend to be disinterested, but would have Zelda give her any "juicy" details.

"I wanted to talk about… us," he began slowly.

"I figured, we don't really talk about much else, do we?" I said wryly.

"Yeah, and it shouldn't be that way. I want to get to know you, and to have a real conversation with you, but it seems like all we do is make-up and break-up. We're wasting whatever time we have left together being mad at each other, and I'm tired of trying to stay mad at you. You're unique Rose, I'll never meet another girl like you."

"Our last break-up wasn't my fault, you know. You didn't even try to understand why I did what I did. You just jumped to conclusions and assumed I was in love with the Boy Blunder."

"You have to admit, it was weird. What was I supposed to think? Look, forget it. It's in the past, he's not here anymore, which means that even if you did like him, and I'm not saying you do, you're stuck with me," he said with a grin.

"I guess I have no choice but to spend time with you, how awful," I said as I returned his smile and took his hand in mine. Before either of us could say anything else I heard a loud gunshot and a few seconds later Joker came back into the room, now fully clothed.

"All right you two, it's challenge time!" he announced. "Chop chop, this one will be a doozy!"

I cast one more glance at Edward and we both followed Joker out of the mess hall and to another room farther down the hall. Inside were four cots, two of which were already occupied by Jess-Belle and Zelda, both strapped down. Jess-Belle looked calm and collected, while Zelda's expression clearly read "Bring it on."

"Go find a cot and lie down, relax while you still can," chuckled Joker.

I laid down in one of the remaining cots and Edward took the other. The Joker strapped us down as he hummed some strange tune.

"Why do we need to be strapped down?" asked Zelda. "Are you going to harvest our organs or something? 'Cause you already took one of mine."

"Don't tempt me, kid. Actually, today's challenge should be much more entertaining," said Joker as he clapped his hands together. "For today's challenge, you will all be drugged with fear toxin borrowed from our friendly neighborhood Scarecrow. Anyone who can fight off the effects of the toxin within the time limit will win immunity, and anyone who fails must face the wrath of the Wheel. Are you all ready?" he asked. Without waiting for an answer, he picked up a vial of toxin and threw it into the center of the room, causing it to shatter and release fumes into the air. I immediately began to feel its effects, the room around me grew darker and darker as he laughed, until the room and the Joker's boisterous laughter disappeared and I was surrounded utter blackness.

The dark quickly faded, and I found myself back in the orphanage I had grown up in. I was in a tiny closet that I recognized as my room. I wondered what was going on, and gasped when I saw myself as a child, gently brushing the hair of a tattered marionette rag doll that was coming apart at the seams. I almost didn't recognize her at first as being me, because her face was so much younger, and her hair reached almost to her knees. In her face was an innocence, a naivety, that I hadn't had in years. She couldn't have been more than four years old. So the toxin was causing me to relive my past, or parts of it anyway. I opened the door to the room to try to leave, but when I did I found the same blackness that had engulfed me before. I realized then that, despite the fact that I was merely an observer, I might as well be back in my younger body. I could only see what my past-self had seen, I couldn't relive something she hadn't seen or experienced.

The little girl looked so alone and melancholy, like she longed for someone to reach out to her and comfort her. She got off her tiny cot and left her room and I followed close behind, wondering why exactly the toxin was showing me this. She went into one of the big rooms that most of the orphans shared. They all wished they could have their own rooms, but the only reason I had my own room was because the nuns wanted to keep me away from the other children as much as possible. The other kids were discouraged from playing with me or talking to me, as if I had a disease.

At that moment, a woman came over to her and knelt before her. She was impeccably dressed, it was obvious she was very wealthy. "Oh my, she's so beautiful. Look at her Ray, she looks just like Taylor did before the accident."

A man knelt down beside her, dressed just as nicely as his wife, and said with a wide smile, "She does, she really does. She's perfect, in every way."

"I want her, I want her to be our daughter," said the woman with tears in her eyes as she turned to Sister Erin, who had gone very pale. Erin was a woman in her early to mid-forties, with a plain face and dull gray eyes.

While I had been raised collectively by all the nuns, Sister Erin had always been my primary caregiver. It was odd, because the nuns didn't play favorites and cared for each and every child equally, except for Erin. What made it even stranger was the fact that she didn't seem to like me any more than anyone else did; she offered me physical care but never went any farther than that. The woman hated me and always made it painfully obvious just how she felt about me. She never hurt me physically, but she more than made up for it by telling me constantly just how worthless I was, how I was despised and unwanted by everyone and how bad I was, even when I hadn't done anything wrong. She would often lock me in the closet that was my room for hours on end, especially when potential parents came by. Fortunately, the other nuns would sometimes let me out early, much to Erin's chagrin and my immense relief. On this particular occasion, Erin had accidentally forgotten to lock the door, and so naturally, I had escaped. I would later learn to pick locks, but at the time I was at their mercy.

"But you haven't met any of the other children yet, they would love to talk to you. You want to make sure you choose just the right one, right?" Erin said with a forced smile.

"No, she's the one, I know it. She's like a little angel, I've never seen a more beautiful little girl, even at her age. What's your name?" she asked.

"Rosemary," the child version of me replied quietly, unable to meet the eyes of the woman.

"What a beautiful name," said Ray as he lightly stroked her hair.

"Listen, she's not the one you want. She's not like other children, and I don't mean that in a good way. She's a bad seed," said Erin as she shot her a poisonous glare that made the child cringe, but plastered the fake smile back before the couple could see.

"What do you mean?" asked Ray, confused.

Erin took them aside and after about an hour, managed to persuade them to reluctantly adopt another child. A blonde girl who looked a lot like me by the name of Jessica.

"I told you to stay in the closet!" Erin barked at her as she grabbed her hand and roughly dragged her away. "Why won't you ever listen to me?"

"I don't like it in there, it's too scary," the child whimpered.

"You're lucky I make you stay in there, and not Arkham, where freaks like you belong."

"What's Arkham?" the child asked nervously.

"A terrible place where they lock up all the crazy people, and once they put you in there, you can't ever come out," said Erin as she looked her dead in the eye. "Whenever you go inside all you hear are screams, and it's always dark, and no one in there is ever happy. No one wants you Rosemary, no one loves you because you're an evil child, an abomination, a freak that should never have existed. You should never have been born, you're a curse on Gotham and the entire world."

As a child, I was smarter than the other kids, and so while most of them wouldn't have known what she meant at that age, I had, but I couldn't understand why she believed those things, or what I had done to make her hate me so, and I still didn't. At that age I had believed there was good in everyone and that it was just harder to see in some than in others, and so instead of becoming angry at her, I had become angry with myself instead.

She dragged the tiny girl and forced her into the tiny, dark closet that had been my prison for so long. At that age I was afraid of the dark and a bit claustrophobic, and the feeling of being trapped alone with monsters terrified me. I would beat on the door and cry and scream until my fists hurt and my throat was sore, and eventually either Erin would relent or one of the other nuns would feel sorry for me and let me out. This would become a routine after a while, but at that time I wasn't used to it yet. The other nuns were kinder to me than Erin was, but they always hesitated to come to my aid in any way, as though they had to force themselves to be around me, let alone help me.

The scene changed to that night, where Sister Erin had child-Rose in bed and was trying to give her my pills for the night. Normally I would take them without protest because I knew what would happen if I didn't, but I had felt hurt and kind of miffed that she had said such things about me and, being a child who didn't quite understand life and death yet, refused.

"Rosemary, take your pills now!" she ordered as she grabbed her by the mouth and tried to force them down her throat.

"No! I don't want to anymore!" child-Rose screamed at she squirmed and tried to escape Erin's hold on her.

"If you don't, you'll die," said Erin, surprising me by actually sounding concerned for my well-being. The woman was a walking contradiction, hurting me one moment and insisting I take my medication to stay alive the next. It was always very confusing, the woman was like Bree on steroids. If either of them belonged in Arkham, it was definitely her.

"You don't care about that, you want me to die!"

"What makes you say that?" she asked frustratedly.

"You won't let anyone take me home, you won't let me have a family like the other kids. You told those people I was bad so they wouldn't want me, but you never do that with anyone else! You even let Toby go, and he put spiders in everyone's beds!"

"Rosemary, the reason I told those people that you were a bad girl is because… because we all love you too much to let you go. We want you to stay here with us."

"Really?" she asked, and Erin nodded her head. That lie fooled me for about a year, it worked until I was old enough to realize that they weren't hiding me out of love, but I still had no idea what the real reason was. Kid-Rose was satisfied with that answer though and took her pills, and from then on she did her best to try to fit in and act as she was expected to act. She knew the expected answer to every question asked and learned what to say to keep out of trouble, she was the top of her class in every school subject and did her best to not start fights with the other kids, but no matter what she did or how hard she tried, she was constantly shunned and rejected by everyone around her. She tried to be a good girl so that the others might like and accept her, but it never worked, and she blamed herself for it. The scene abruptly began to change again.

It became _Happi Jack's Wonder Carnival,_ and I saw myself and some of the other orphans in line to get tickets. I was seven at the time, and this had been a special treat for all of us, a little vacation we were given once a year. It was a wonder I'd even been allowed to come, really. I watched my younger self go into the funhouse, where she would accidentally get separated from the others. She became lost, and when she found her way out she was in a completely different part of the carnival. For a few minutes she searched for the others but as she did she noticed all the happy children with their parents. She became jealous, and decided to run away so that she wouldn't have to live in the orphanage anymore, where no one wanted her. She ran away from the carnival and into the city, a place she had never really been before. Naturally she became even more lost and began to worry if maybe she had made a mistake. At some point Batman himself found her, but she refused to let him help her.

I remembered that very well. I had barreled right into him, and he'd kneeled down to my level and said as I stared at him, wide-eyed, "Are you lost? Where are your parents?"

Even as a child I had never liked him, and so I had turned and ran from him. He called out to me, asked me to come back, promising that he wouldn't hurt me, but I had refused to go with him.

While my past self was hiding she was found by a couple who kindly took her in, and she felt her hope rise that maybe she had finally found the family she had always wanted so badly.

But then things went wrong. They put her in the guest room to sleep, and the very next night, barely an entire twenty-four hours later, she began to feel sick. She went into the kitchen to ask the lady (Mrs. Clark had been her name) for some help, and the woman screamed.

"Seth, get in here, now!" she cried as she backed as far as she could away from the child before her.

"Honey what is- oh my God!" he yelled when he saw the little girl.

They both just stared at her for a while, as if frozen in place. The expressions on their faces were of absolute horror, they both trembled. Kid-Rose was frightened by this, she couldn't imagine why they were acting this way.

"Mrs. Clark?" she had asked tentatively. "What's wrong? Why are you upset?"

As she reached out a hand towards her, the woman shrieked and her husband's face filled with anger. He grabbed me by my hair and dragged me to the bathroom and locked the door. Child-Rose cowered in the bathtub, too afraid to beg to be let out. She was reminded of the closet she was so often locked up in, and although she could now pick the lock with ease, and even though she no longer feared the dark or small spaces or monsters, memories of being trapped in there overwhelmed her, even though the bathroom was wide and had light and was nothing like the closet. They argued about something for a long time, shouting at each other very loudly, though they were both in such hysterics that their words were barely coherent. I couldn't make out what they were saying, but I knew it couldn't be good, whatever it was. To this day I don't know why they did what they did next, but it left its mark on me, literally and figuratively. Seth unlocked the door and picked me up and carried me back to the kitchen, where the woman was waiting with the oven open. He shoved me inside and they turned the oven on high. It was a gas oven, and flames came on and began to burn my skin. I listened to my younger self scream and cry and beg to be let out from inside the oven as Mrs. Clark duct-taped the oven door shut so that she couldn't escape. She realized she was going to die, and wondered what on earth she could have done to have earned such an unthinkable punishment, and as tears of shame slid down her cheeks, she silently cursed herself for being born as something that no one could ever love, whatever that was.

Suddenly, another man broke down the door and attacked the couple. Because I had been trapped in an oven when this memory was formed, I couldn't see who the man was or really even hear what was happening, not over my own screams of terror and agony anyway. The man killed them both and took a kitchen knife to cut the duct tape and rescued me from the oven. He pulled me out and took me outside to his car, and I felt a sharp stab in my neck like a needle, but that pain quickly faded and the pain from my burns overwhelmed me. As he drove to the hospital, he spent the entire trip muttering to himself about something that I couldn't remember. At that point I had been so out of it I couldn't remember anything at all about him, except that he had saved me.

"Can I get some help over here?" he shouted as he carried me into the hospital, and after that I blacked out and never saw him again. The police investigating considered him to be a Good Samaritan, and didn't pursue him too seriously because he had saved the life of a child. I recovered pretty quickly physically in the hospital and was soon returned to the orphanage, but mentally I was forever scarred. I often wondered why they had treated me like they had, but none of my theories could completely explain their actions. Some of my theories didn't make any sense at all, but the one that made the most sense was that perhaps families weren't all they were cracked up to be. I had seen families on TV and in the city, and while it seemed so wonderful, I wondered what really happened behind closed doors. After all, most parents, if they despised their children, wouldn't show it in public. Having never had parents or siblings, I really had no idea what family life was about, and I wondered if maybe parents were expected to treat their children cruelly, if it was accepted and normal for them to hurt their children, even kill them. Even after I realized how absurd that theory was, it still made me never want to be adopted as I once had.

The scene changed to three years later, at another orphan outing. This time it was to the Gotham History Museum, not the ideal place for children, but they were promised ice cream afterwards, so they behaved themselves. It was the first outing I had been allowed on since the carnival incident, because Erin had taken away all my privileges and wouldn't even let me outside, but I had snuck along for this outing, not caring about the consequences. It had been my tenth birthday after all, a big milestone, and I felt that I deserved this since no one was else going to acknowledge the day of my birth. But it would seem that fate made me its personal chew toy, and constantly went out of its way to take a good day and completely screw it up.

I was the only kid there who was enjoying the museum, because I was fascinated by all the exhibits. They saw it as an extension of school, and they were right, but I was eager to learn all I could about everything I could. Not to mention that being here meant I wasn't back at the orphanage, so it was a win-win for me.

As young-Rose was gazing up at a statue of Christopher Columbus, I heard several screams and saw none other than the Joker and Harley running around stealing various parts of the exhibits, such as the nose of President Lincoln, the loincloth from one of the cavemen in one of the other rooms, and Christopher Columbus's map. As they laughed merrily, four guards showed up and pointed their guns at them.

"Don't move or we'll shoot!" shouted one of them, who I took to be the leader.

"Hey Harley," said Joker as they put their hands in the air. "That blonde pig-tailed kid's a cutie-pie, don't you think?"

Harley got the hint and dashed over to the child he had been referring to and grabbed her as she pressed the cold, metal barrel of a pistol to past-Rose's temple. "Shoot and princess gets a makeover, capiche?"

The guards kept their guns trained on the crazy couple, but didn't dare shoot as long as there were children involved. They had clear shots on both of them, but they couldn't risk killing an innocent child. The orphans cowered and whimpered in fear, all cowering together in a corner. I remembered at the time feeling afraid, but at the same time feeling the urge to try to escape Harley's hold and fight back.

"What's your name, kid?" asked Joker with a friendly smile as he pointed a gun of his own at her.

"Ro-Rose," she answered nervously.

"That's a pretty name," commented Harley, not letting up on her hold on her.

"Would you mind helping us out on our little caper here?" asked Joker sweetly. "All you have to do is come with us and look extra cute, shouldn't be too difficult, right?"

Past-Rose nodded her head and came with them, and as they rounded a corner, Joker opened fire on the guards, each bullet hitting its mark. They tried to shoot him in return, but he moved too quickly for them to hit, and after a career dodging bullets, he knew where and how to move to avoid each shot.

They led her outside, where the Joker took the sacks with their loot inside and tossed them into a nearby dumpster and lit in on fire. A startled hobo quickly climbed out of the inferno, frantically patting out the flames in his pants as he did so.

"Way to go kid, you're a great hostage. You should consider doing it for a living," laughed Joker.

"Mistah J, we gotta go, we're gonna be late," said Harley anxiously, excitedly.

"You and your time, what are you, the White Rabbit?" asked Joker, annoyed. He turned back to the child before him and ruffled her hair and said, "See you around, kid."

The incident creeped me out more than anything else, and I couldn't believe I hadn't remembered it. If I had, would I have accepted the Joker's invitation to join the Joker's Circus? Surprisingly, the answer was yes.

The scene changed again, and this time I saw myself at eleven years old. I was in the orphan playground, swinging alone while all the other kids played tag at the opposite end, away from me as always. The kids didn't treat me this way just because the nuns encouraged them to keep their distance, although that certainly didn't help matters. No, ultimately it was the kids themselves, because kids almost never listen to adults, and they could have ignored them and chosen to be with me regardless, but they didn't. I was different from them, and they didn't like it. If you asked them why they hated me so, they probably wouldn't have been able to articulate their reasons into words, because there weren't words for what I was. I tried to fit in, but it seemed the harder I tried, the less I was accepted. I knew I was different but didn't understand why, but I had accepted it, and so I didn't try to speak to any of them, even though I had wanted to.

But my little world was flipped on its head when a small Asian girl approached past-Rose. She had never seen her before, which meant that she was new because she had lived in their long enough to know the names of every child in there. She didn't bother to even look at her or try to speak to her, because she was used to being avoided and ignored.

"Hi, my name's Libby. What's your name?" she asked me sweetly.

Past-Rose could only gape at her, unsure of how to respond. She had given up on ever having friends, and so she was dumbfounded.

"R-Rose," she answered, half expecting this to be some kind of prank.

"That doll must be pretty old, since it's falling apart like that," said Libby. "Aren't you a bit old to be playing with dolls like that, though?"

I looked down at the doll in her arms, a marionette ragdoll. It had been my only companion in my eleven years, and I cherished it deeply, even though all the other girls made fun of it on a regular basis, even the ones who were my age and still played with dolls. The doll was always falling apart and I had to constantly stitch it back up, but I had loved it anyway. There was nothing special about it, I didn't even know where it had come from, I'd had it as far back as I could remember, but it was all I'd had and so, even though I was too old for it, I wasn't about to give it up.

"So what if I am?" she replied defensively. I had begun to care less and less about what other people thought of me, I had become hardened to them and their opinions of me.

"I didn't mean anything by it, it's just unexpected, is all. I still like playing with dolls too, but mine were all lost in the house fire that killed my mom and dad," Libby said sadly as she hung her head. She looked back up at me and said, "Mind if I swing with you?" To which child-Rose agreed, though careful to not show how surprised and happy this made her.

For a few weeks Libby and I had been inseparable, though that didn't stop the nuns from trying. Whenever they saw us together, they'd try to split us up, which irritated us but failed to keep us apart. Erin had long since given up on locking me in the closet because I could easily pick my way out, though she had resorted to it a few times to keep me away from Libby. At the time, I had believed my time with her was the happiest of my life, but of course all good things must come to an end.

"Hey look it's the freak!" jeered a boy one day in arts and crafts. He pointed at me and laughed, as did everyone else, except Libby. I was used to that kind of treatment and ignored it, or tried to anyway. Most of the time I was shunned, but occasionally one of them would single me out and torture me. I actually kind of preferred that, because at least they were brave enough to insult me to my face, rather than whisper lies behind my back like the others.

The boy, whose name had been Carl, came over and stood behind me as he continued to mock me. "How does it feel to be hated by everyone in the world, even the nuns? You must have done something pretty bad to be hated so much. Or maybe it's just 'cause you're so ugly. It would certainly explain why you've never once been adopted."

"Shut up, Carl," said Libby defensively.

"Just ignore him," she told her. She had reached a point when she tuned out their hateful words, though she wasn't above insults. "With a brain as dumb as his if we don't do anything for a while he'll forget we're even here."

"Is that so?" Carl grabbed a pair of scissors and, before she could stop him, cut off one of her pigtails, causing the whole room to erupt with laughter. She stood up to face him and he grabbed her doll out of her hands and said, "Aren't you a little old to be playing with dolls?" He then proceeded to cut the doll's head off. Enraged, she pounced on him and knocked him to the floor. She tried to take the scissors from him but they flew out of his hand before she could, so she used the next best thing within reach: a can of blue paint. She pinched his nose shut, forcing him to breathe though his mouth and she poured the paint down his throat. He coughed and violently convulsed as the other kids began to scream in fear and ran for help. Several nuns, including Erin, ran in and pulled her off of Carl. It took three nuns to hold her down while the rest rushed the boy off to the emergency room. He almost didn't make it, they actually said it was a miracle he'd survived with so much toxic paint in his lungs.

After he was returned he was never the same, but at least he didn't pick on me anymore, and instead ran at the very sight of me. Libby never spoke to me again after that, and with my doll ruined, I felt truly alone, even more than before. I could have stitched the doll up again, but I realized I didn't need it anymore and burned it. On the bright side, the experience taught me that an important lesson. I thought I had needed companionship, but it was only then that I realized that friends were a waste of time, and that I was better off alone. No one around me was worthy of my friendship anyway, they were all so stupid, and I realized that I was superior to them. The downside was the other repercussions of the incident.

The scene changed, and I saw myself a few days later speaking with two priests. The priests finished and got up and went to talk to Sister Erin. One of them, the older one, said, "I can't find anything wrong with her, she's so sweet and kind. In fact, she seems very intelligent and precocious, have you had her tested?" Erin shook her head no, and the priest continued. "I believe the incident with that little boy will not be repeated and that she has learned her lesson. She is very… different, and I sense that she is troubled, but nothing that calls for what you're asking us to do. I saw something in her eyes that I've never seen before in a child, but with proper guidance and instruction, she should be fine."

"Are you sure?" she asked doubtfully.

"Positive."

"There's something you should know, Father…"

She took them in another room while I had been left to wait in my room. I don't know what was said between them, but that night the younger priest came into my room to perform an exorcism. He locked the door and turned off the lights and lit several candles, and tied past-Rose down to her bed. He yelled at the "demon" within her to come out and release her. He sprinkled holy water on me and, when nothing happened, began to beat me viciously. He hit her again and again, and when she tried to scream, when she had tried to tell him that there were no demons inside her, he gagged her with her shirt. This lasted for several hours, until she was exhausted from trying to escape her bonds, and so was he. At some point during the ritual she stopped trying to scream and escape, having realized that it would do no good, and retreated within herself to escape. The pain and fear were still there, but it was as if someone else was feeling it, like it wasn't she who was suffering. The older priest had come by again, apparently he knew nothing of this. He had been talking to Erin, who hadn't come to my aid or let anyone else come, and he was trying to get her to tell him what was going on. It was then that the younger priest untied her and picked her up, took her from her room, and tossed her down a flight of stairs.

"Lawrence, how could you do this?" shouted the older man when they had found my broken and bloody body at the foot of the stairs. He knelt down by her side, as did Erin, both looking very worried. "This is a child of God, and you killed her!"

"What have you done?" screeched Erin as she got down on her knees beside her, her face filled with terror. I just could never figure her out, for some reason. "She's still breathing, I'll call an ambulance. Stay awake Rosemary, don't do this to me!" She screamed as she pulled out a cellphone and dialed 911.

"That is no child of God, that evil creature needs to be destroyed!" Lawrence shouted back. "She's not possessed at all, she is the demon! You saw her eyes, they were filled with nothing but evil and darkness, if we don't stop this now it will be too late! You heard what the nun said, don't tell me you didn't see what I saw in this child's eyes."

The older priest paused for a moment, then said, "Regardless, you had no right to do this. You have done a terrible thing, pray you will be forgiven for this sin."

"What is going on here? Merciful heavens! What's happened to the child?" said someone else, a voice I recognized as Mother Leela's. Leela had always fought for children who couldn't do it themselves and dedicated her life to them, and wasn't afraid to do what was necessary to protect them. I'd seen her get rid of nuns who were treating kids badly without hesitation, her children's welfare being her top priority. But when it came to me, even though they all knew about Erin's treatment of me, all Leela ever gave her was a slap on the wrist. I was pretty sure I'd even smelled alcohol on her breath a time or two, but never once did Leela so much as threaten to kick her out. Oh sure, they'd get into arguments whenever she felt Erin was taking things too far, but it never went beyond that. She'd felt some compassion for me, she'd let me out of the closet when the others wouldn't and see to it that Erin didn't go too far, but beyond that it was like I didn't exist.

"You have to help me Leela, we can't let her die!" pleaded Erin, as though the older woman held the power over life and death in her hands. "I didn't mean for this to happen, oh please God, don't let her die!"

I was taken to the hospital in an ambulance, with Erin riding with us. I passed in and out of consciousness, and it seemed that every time I awoke Erin was shouting at the paramedics and pleading with them to save me, even going so far as to offer them money. I swear, she didn't stop freaking out until they told her that they knew I would be okay. I got out of that with a broken leg, fractured collarbone, and a bad concussion from the fall, and several cracked ribs from the beating. Lawrence was arrested, but on the way to the police station the squad car crashed, killing him and both the cops inside. The next day the older priest died as well, but of a heart attack. The scene shifted again, to the day when I finally got the casts taken off. Libby had also been adopted that day, and past-Rose had been angry and jealous of her. She was tired but couldn't sleep because she couldn't stop thinking about what had happened. She went outside into the snow, and though it was freezing she hardly felt it, she was too distracted by the swirling thoughts in her head. Why was I so despised? Why did I have to have such rotten luck? Why couldn't I be good enough for anyone? I had never felt so angry before, it was like a fire inside me. She sat down in the snow and began aimlessly throwing rocks to try to calm herself down. While she did, a stray cocker spaniel roamed through the gate and came up next to her. She stared at it as it nuzzled her and licked her hand. Most kids would have hugged the dog and taken it in to be their best friend, but I hadn't been like most kids.

She took the stone she had been about to throw and brought it down hard on the dog's head, causing it to jump back and whimper in pain. She struck the dog again and again with the rock, until it stopped yelping and whimpering and trying to escape. When she had finished she looked down at the dog's bloody corpse, and she looked at the blood-soaked stone in her hand, and grew afraid. Afraid because if anyone found out she would be punished, but more afraid of how killing the dog had made her feel. It had felt good to take out my pain and frustration on that dog, it was like a huge weight had been lifted from my back. She looked down at the dog and thought of doing the same thing to Erin, to Carl, to all the people who had hurt her, which scared her even more. I had been afraid because I had enjoyed murdering a living thing, I was scared because that meant something really was wrong with me. I had been terrified of this thing that had been briefly awakened inside of me, I didn't want to be a monster. She took the dog and the stone and hid them both in a dumpster, because she didn't have a shovel to bury them with, and just when she thought she had gotten away with it, as she had been about to reenter the orphanage, she was stopped by the janitor.

"Hello there," he said as he looked down at her and blocked the doorway. "And just what is a sweet little girl like yourself doing on a night like this? A night like this ain't fit for man or beast."

She looked up at the man before her. I had seen him around before, he didn't work consistently, only appearing every now and again. The part of his face that wasn't obscured by a silver moustache was slightly tanned, and his eyes were a bright, gleaming emerald green, the likes of which I had never seen before. His body was lean and appeared to have no muscle on it, and he looked like he hadn't showered in a long time. Past-Rose was frozen to the spot with guilt and fear of being caught. She said nothing, only stared up at him, unable to break eye-contact.

"Say, you haven't seen a cocker spaniel out here, have you?" he said in a gravelly voice. "He's a stray I've been looking after, but now I can't seem to find him."

_I am so dead_, she had thought to herself. _He knows, somehow he knows what I did. They'll lock me up in juvie, or worse. _She knew they didn't give the death penalty to children, especially not for animal murder, but that didn't stop the possibility from running through her mind.

"You know something, don't you?" he asked her, and the way he looked at her, combined with her own guilt, made it impossible to hide the truth from him any longer. Normally I was an adept liar, but in this case I had crumbled.

"I killed the dog!" she blurted out, beginning to panic. She began blabbering as tears ran down her face, "I-I didn't mean to, I mean I did, but… I don't know. P-Please sir, things are b-bad enough for me al-already, if a-anyone finds out, especially E-Erin, they'll l-l-lock me away and swallow the key. I know th-they don't do that for stuff like this, b-but they've been waiting for an excuse my wh-whole life. Erin's al-always said I belong in the asyl-lum, she's says that's what they do with people l-like m-me, she says it's such a t-terrible place, I don't ever want to go there, I'd rather d-die. Please d-don't tell them, I'm s-sorry, I'll do anything! I don't have much I can give you, the only money I have is from the swear jar the older kids use, and I can't take much without the nuns noticing. If you tell them, I'll r-run away and never come ba-"

"That's enough, quit blubbering, child," the man snapped sharply, his gaze so frightening she immediately shut up and forced herself to stop crying.

He crouched down to her level and looked her in the eye, and his steely, unrelenting gaze sent shivers down her spine. His eyes seemed to pierce her, and in that moment she felt naked in front of him, as if he could see right through her and know everything about her. He said to her, "Don't ever be ashamed of what you are, and don't let anyone ever tell you otherwise." He stood up and led her back inside.

"It'll be our little secret," he told her gruffly before he shut the door, and then he disappeared, and I never saw him again. I didn't know what he meant, or why he didn't turn me in. If he had, he might have prevented a lot of bloodshed in the future. I might've ended up in Arkham a lot sooner, and I wondered how I might have turned out if they had put me in there at such a young age.

I never spoke of the incident to anyone. I got away with it, but from then on I forced myself to not think about what had happened, and how good it had made me feel, because I didn't want to tempt the monster, and instead hoped that it would go away if I didn't hurt anyone else. Look how that turned out.

The scene changed again, and this time I was about thirteen. I was sitting on my bed next to Sister Erin. Even though I was still so young, I had grown taller than all the kids my age and my breasts were already almost fully developed. I had started puberty before the others, somewhere around my twelfth birthday and it seemed to have happened overnight, which had given them another excuse to pick on me, and it didn't end until I turned fourteen, two years after I'd begun puberty, when everyone else finally began to catch up and I didn't stand out so much anymore. But that was the better part of my puberty experience, the bleeding was far worse.

Because of my blood disorder, the first time I bled, I believed the pills were no longer working and that I was slowly bleeding out, and I was terrified. I went to Erin and told her about the bleeding and everything that came with it, and she had just brushed me off and had been no help at all. Fearing the worst, I had snuck into the secretary's office and logged onto the computer they used to store the orphan's information, and I used it to do a search about my symptoms. I learned I wasn't dying and that what I was experiencing was perfectly normal, but that did little to calm my unease. To me, of all the abuse I'd suffered over the years, physical, mental, emotional, that was one of the cruelest things anyone had ever done to me. It showed me that Erin, the closest thing I'd ever had to a mother, didn't care enough about me to explain what was happening to me, that as long as my problem wasn't life-threatening she felt no obligation to be there for me. It made me wonder what she would do if my disorder was disfiguring or debilitating, instead of fatal. Would she have still given me my pills? It certainly didn't look like it. I knew she didn't like me, but that had been a new low. I had been unsure of the changes overtaking my body, and even after learning it was normal, I still was bothered by it, as is every girl at that time in her life. I shouldn't have been forced to get answers about that kind of thing from a machine, I had needed a woman to guide me through the changes that I was going through, someone to tell me how it is between a man and a woman. But instead I'd been forced to figure out everything for myself and learn how to deal with everything from bleeding once a month to getting rid of fuzzy legs, all with no support. Too bad I couldn't do the same about my parents.

"No one will tell me who my parents were, or what happened to them, but why is that? You must know something about them, anything."

"There is nothing for me to tell you, I'm sorry," she replied coldly, sounding anything but apologetic.

"Please, I'll take whatever information you have on them. This is driving me crazy, it's bad enough that I'm forced to stay here, don't I at least deserve to know why?" I pleaded.

Erin sighed wearily and said, "Many years ago, when you were only a couple months old, a man that we assume was your father brought you here. He told us your name, and asked us to take care of you, but nothing else. He left without giving us his name, and we never saw him again."

"What about my mother?"

"We know nothing about her. We don't know why they gave you away, though it was probably because they knew what you are, even as a newborn infant. You're a freak of nature, child, and knowing who your parents are won't change that. Listen Rosemary, life isn't fair, and the sooner you accept that, the better. You do your best, but you make one mistake and everything falls to pieces. Trust me, I know that better than anyone," she said bitterly, and I wondered what incident in her life she was referring to.

"Erin, why do you pretend to like me, when clearly you've always despised and resented me? You've taken care of me my whole life, but whenever you think I'm not looking you glare at me with utter contempt, you tell me how terrible I am and lock me in the closet. And if you hate me so much, why wouldn't you ever let me be adopted? It's as if you like torturing yourself. You and everyone else here hate my guts, you even seem to be afraid of me, why is that? You're nuns, you're supposed to love each and every child, and yet you're all repulsed by me. Don't tell me you guys all love me too much to let me go, I'm not a little kid anymore and I'm not stupid. Every word you've ever spoken to me is a lie, and I'm going to run away."

"No!" exclaimed Erin, her eyes wide. "You can't leave the orphanage until you're sixteen."

"You can't stop me!"

"Rosemary, please, stay for me. I can't answer your questions now, but I promise one day this will all make sense. I know you don't like it here, but it's only for three more years. You'll just have to trust me a little longer. Please Rosemary, there are things you don't understand yet, and it's for the best that you stay here until you're ready to leave. I know I haven't been kind to you, but you have to trust me on this."

In all my life the only emotions I had ever seen on her were anger, anxiety, loathing, disdain, and revulsion. But the look of sheer desperation on her face caught Past-Rose off guard, and she reluctantly agreed. Looking back, I saw how psychotic Erin was, she was downright scary. "I can't wait until I'm old enough to leave this place, to leave Gotham. I can start my own life, become someone important, someone special who won't be overlooked and hated anymore."

The scene shifted again to the night I was attacked, the night that would lead to me being sent to Arkham asylum. I watched as I was beaten and raped by some drunk creep and his buddies outside the diner I worked at as a waitress just outside the Narrows, the place where I had been living. Not a single person came to my rescue, even though there were still plenty of people in the diner, and witnessing it like this stirred feelings of anger inside me. It was then that something within past-Rose finally snapped, and she took the knife the guy was threatening her with and stabbed him in the neck. As he died she threw him off of her and went after the others. They were too drunk to fight back, they were too easy to kill, and I found myself almost cheering my past self on. She then went back inside and killed everyone inside, and by the time she had finished them off the police had been called and they subdued her.

I then saw myself being taken to Arkham, and once that memory ended I was suddenly surrounded by utter blackness, so dark I could feel it. And with the darkness came all the memories I had just witnessed and more, but instead of one at a time like before they all came at once, demanding my attention. I couldn't handle them like this, it was like I was being attacked. I pulled at my hair and felt tears run down my face as I tried to block them out, but was powerless to do so. I forgot all about the challenge, the toxin, and about the fear, about beating the others and staying alive. I had no wish to relive these memories any longer, they consumed me, and it was taking all my strength to not break down and lose it right there. I was no longer fighting to beat the toxin; I was fighting to keep what remained of my sanity.

As I tried to block out all those memories, it finally came to me, why I was being shown these things. Before now I hadn't really been sure what my greatest fear was, exactly. I feared dying a bit, not death itself, but that moment when you know you're about to leave your body for good. But now I realized it was more than that. All these images showed me how hated I was in the world, how no one would really care if I died. I had no attachments to the world like other people did, I had no friends or family to lose. My fear (not in the typical definition of the word) was my own worthlessness, the utter pointlessness of my life. I didn't matter to anyone, not a single person would be damaged beyond repair if I died. If I died, the world would continue spinning like always, I would leave no impact or legacy behind to be remembered by. I didn't want to be nothing, anymore.

I also began to see the world differently. The way Erin and the nuns, and the other orphans treated me had always made me feel weak and vulnerable, unable to defend myself in any way. I had had no control over my life, but that had changed, because after all these years, I had finally taken control of my life. I had grown up hating myself because I had believed there was something wrong with me, but I realized that it was the world that had the problem, not me. No longer was I weak or vulnerable, I was unstoppable.

After the Clarks tried to roast me to death, I had been afraid of being adopted because I had feared that everyone would be like that. I knew that wasn't true, but I had still been afraid. I knew that not everyone would try to barbecue me alive, but that incident and everything else in my life had shown me how awful the world was. A terrible place, where goodness and kindness and decency were nothing more than words people used to make the world not seem so bad. Those things were like masks for most people to hide behind, and those who truly believed in those things were a dying breed.

I was a perfect, living example of how corrupt the world was. It was funny to look back and see just how pathetic and wretched I had been, and how I had changed to become the Marionette. Why someone like me had been allowed to live was baffling. Not only was I a square peg in a round hole, but the people who believed I was evil had turned out to be right. Apparently, my true nature had been visible even as a child. The monster that I had tried to get rid of would never leave like I had prayed it would as a kid, but I found I didn't want it to anymore. I decided then and there that I would no longer let my fears get in the way of anything, that I would show the world just how corrupt it really was. I would become more than I was, and take all the pain I had been dealt and give it back to the world tenfold.

I forced the memories that had tormented me so to the back of my mind, I locked them away so that they could never hurt me again, though I was only barely conscious of this. The past was irrelevant, all that mattered now was the present, the future no longer bothered me. I was going to win this game, and take my rightful place as the Joker's sidekick. I no longer had any fear, anything and everything that I had once feared seemed silly to me now, and the very thought that those things had once hurt and scared me was hilarious, really. I had wasted so much time letting my fears have control over me. Sure, I hadn't allowed them much power in the past anyway, but even that little bit was too much. Fear's power over me completely dissipated, never again would I feel afraid, because I had finally realized that I didn't need to be. For the first time in my entire life, I was free.

The memories suddenly disappeared and I felt myself waking up with a gasp. The Joker was sitting in a lawn chair off to the side, playing a game of Pac-Man on a TV. He had over three million points, and was about to break four million.

My head was spinning, and I was having trouble making sense of the thoughts in my head. In my disorientation, I brilliantly stated breathlessly, "That's a really high score."

"You should see my high score on Dig Dug," he said nonchalantly as he completed the level and moved onto the next.

I tasted blood, and realized I had been biting my lip so hard it was bleeding. My hands also had several crescent-shaped cuts where I had clenched my fists so tightly my nails had dug into the skin. On either side of me the others were either shaking and writhing, screaming and crying out, or all those things. Edward suddenly gasped and opened his eyes. His eyes were wild, and I wondered what he had just faced.

It wasn't too long after that that Jess-Belle escaped her mental prison, but Zelda didn't. Her face was coated in a sheen of sweat, her face contorted in agony of an imagined terror. Joker eventually gave up on her and gave her the anti-toxin, freeing her from her own personal hell.

"Congratulations Eris, goddess of chaos, you managed to be the only loser in today's challenge," said Joker tauntingly. "And here I thought you'd be one of the winners. Oh well, let's go spin that Wheel."

As he led us away, I whispered to Zelda, "What happened? Why couldn't you face your fear?"

"None of your business," she said as she looked away, her face set in grim determination, which was no less than what I had expected from her. I was very curious as to why she had failed this challenge when she had been brave enough to dig out her own eye in the last, but I decided to drop it because I knew pestering her would get me nowhere. But what hidden fear could possibly have crippled someone as fearless, brazen, and crazy as Zelda? I supposed the world would never know. I tried to cheer her up in the only way I knew how by saying, "You know, with you gone, I'll have to deal with Jess-Belle all by myself now. It's very selfish of you."

That got a grin out of her. "Yeah it is, isn't it? Oh well, at least I'll be getting away from you losers. Expect to be eternally haunted by yours truly."

"I expect I'll be seeing you soon, I don't think the devil himself would want you," I said as I elbowed her playfully.

"I'll put in a good word for you," she said as she elbowed me back. How strange we both were, to be talking about her impending death as though she was being forced to go to summer school. I realized I would miss her, even though she had tried to murder me the first time we met, she had been the second friend I'd made in my whole life. Not to mention I was serious about having to deal with Jess-Belle's obnoxious whining by myself now. I almost envied her.

He took us to the auditorium, of course, and as we sat down on the benches the Wheel was rolled out. Zelda brazenly spun the Wheel without a hint of fear on her face. The Wheel landed on a picture of a gun. I was surprised that he would have death by gunshot twice on the Wheel. Maybe if it had been a more interesting or fun way to kill a person it would make sense, but gunshot did not. Nevertheless, the Joker produced a gun and pointed it at her, and she didn't move. I couldn't believe she wasn't fighting back, but then again Zelda wouldn't want to look like a coward. Her eyes _dared_ him to pull the trigger.

The Joker pulled the trigger, and instead of an actual bullet a _Bang!_ flag came out. The Joker scratched his head confusedly and said, "Huh, could have sworn I brought the right gun…"

Zelda turned back to face us, a look of relief and victory on her face. But just as soon as she did, the Joker re-aimed the gun and fired it again, and the _Bang!_ flag shot out and pierced her chest like a spear, and the force of it sent her flying back on the benches where we sat. Her fiery red curls were draped across most of her face, and her remaining eye stared blankly at the ceiling as blood trickled out the side of her mouth.

"Looks like I had the right gun all along, my mistake," said Joker with a broad grin on his face. "And then there were three. Tune in next time to see how I'm going to take this threesome and turn it into a duo for the finale, it'll be a real show stopper!"

_**Author's Note:**__ Funny how often answers lead to more questions, huh_? _Feel free to leave a review and let me know how I'm doing, it always makes my day when you guys do :)_


	20. Chapter 20

Two days later, a little after noon, the Joker rounded us up and brought us to the auditorium and refused to tell us what we were doing, replying with a snappy and patronizing retort every time we asked. Once we were on the stage, he turned to face us with a broad grin on his face.

"Before we begin, I want you to do something for me. Take your right hand, and hold it out in front of you."

I didn't know what the Joker had in mind, so I decided to not stick out my hand, and neither did the others.

"Oh come on, what's the matter with you kids?" he asked, the smile still on his face but his tone hinting at annoyance. "What do you expect me to do, bite off your hands? We are civilized, sane folk, I can't believe you don't trust me," he said, pretending to be hurt.

We hesitantly held our hands in front of us and he said, "Now pat yourselves on the shoulder for making it to the final three! You should be proud, number-wise the odds were against you, but you all managed to pull through and claw your way to victory, you murdered and maimed and did whatever you had to do to win, your dead friends would be so jealous. As a special reward for your success, the three of you will each be allowed to make a call to contact your friends and family before tonight's challenge. No need to thank me, I do it out of love. Follow me!"

We followed him into another room that had a single cord phone on the wall and a chair. Other than that, the room was empty.

"Make sure you take turns, and keep it short because you'll need to practice for the challenge," said Joker.

"What is the challenge?" I asked him.

"Tonight you'll be putting on a performance for all of Gotham showcasing your talents and skills. Whatever talents you have, use them, even if they're illegal, especially if they're illegal. You won't be voting tonight, because the people of Gotham will be doing that for you! Whoever gets the least amount of votes from the fans will win a hot date with the Grim Reaper. Any questions?"

"Yeah, is this the only phone?" asked Edward.

"In the entire house? No. Is it the only one you're allowed to use? Yes," replied Joker.

"You guys wait outside while I'm on the phone," Jess-Belle ordered sharply.

"But that would make it so much more difficult for them to listen in on your conversation," said Joker. "I'm being generous today, and to make things easier you'll all wait in this room until you're all done making your calls."

"What if you don't have anyone to call?" I asked tentatively.

"Doesn't mean you can't eavesdrop on other people's conversations," said Joker flippantly as he left the room.

"Since Jess-Belle will be hogging the phone all day, I'll go first. I'll only be a few minutes," said Edward as he picked up the phone. Jess-Belle clearly objected to this, but he already had the phone in his hand and was dialing a number.

"This brings back memories from the asylum," said Jess-Belle as we both sat down against the wall on either side so that we faced each other. "Calling home was always such a hassle, at least here I won't have to worry about saying anything that would get me in trouble with the guards."

"Who are you going to call?" I asked her.

Edward was now waiting for whoever he had called to pick up. When they did, he began talking animatedly with them, most likely a good friend of his.

"My friend Jade, the only real friend I have right now. Everyone ditched me after I was arrested, but as soon as I get out of here they'll be begging to have a place back in my circle," she said, sounding disgusted of them, but it was clear from her body language that she couldn't get enough of the attention.

"Aren't you going to call your parents?"

"Yeah right. They'd just yell at me for coming here. They only fabricated the lie that I was in Arkham for drug use to protect their own image, not mine. Good thing they're not my real parents, I'd hate to have actually come from such snobs. They can die for all I care."

"You were adopted?" I asked, I hadn't known that, I'd just assumed she had been born into the Monroe family.

"That's right, I guess we have that in common, we both started out in an orphanage. But that's where the similarities end, I was adopted, you never were." I detected just the tiniest hint of gloating in her voice, as if she'd won some kind of medal for being adopted. She looked me in the eye and said, "You really don't have anyone on the outside to call? Not even one person?"

"No, I don't," I admitted unashamedly.

"Wow, I can't imagine what it must be like to be alone like that. Even at my worst I could always buy friends, but you, you have no one waiting for you on the outside, no one staying up at night worrying about you. You could die today, and the only people who would care at all are the crazed fan-boys who want to marry you. What does that feel like?"

I recognized Jess-Belle's trap instantly for what it was and refused to fall for it. If I gave her an inch, she would take a mile. Even though I would never let her manipulate me like she had the others, I wasn't about to let my guard down and give her the chance. "I don't know. I mean, it doesn't feel strange to me, I like being alone. They say no man is an island, but so far I've done a pretty good job of being an island."

"That does sound nice in a way, but after a while I'd need at least two people."

"Why two?"

"One to kill the other, of course. Then again, I suppose I could make-do with just one and have him kill himself, it's only slightly less entertaining. It's why I love my fans so much, they're easier to manipulate than Play-doh."

"Jess-Belle, have you ever directly killed anyone?" I asked her.

"Nope, never. Not even here. I prefer the indirect approach."

"But why? What's the point of that?"

"Because for me it's not about the killing, it never has been. I like the feeling of power that comes from using only words to make someone do something they probably wouldn't have done otherwise. I talked my maid into killing herself when I was five, and ever since then I've always wanted more. So many people have died simply because I spoke the magic words and made it happen. I love that feeling more than anything, even being rich and famous and beautiful."

"I think it's pointless if you don't do it yourself," I said. "I mean, once in a while's fun and all, but convincing people to kill other people or themselves just to show how manipulative you are? That doesn't sound like the Joker's ideal apprentice, it sounds more like a lonely, spoiled child's sad attempt to make herself feel like she has some control over her life. "

Her face grew dark as she said, "Better than being a bloody-thirsty filthy vagrant like yourself. You're pathetic, you kill because you're so insane you think it's funny to watch people die. At least I have my sanity, I'm the only sane person left in Arkham City, while you're barking mad like everyone else. You kill for no reason other than that it amuses you, how are you any better than me?"

"At least I have the guts to do it with my own two hands, instead of talking other people to do it for me. But I don't just do it for fun, I do it because it's the only way for me to distinguish myself from the undefined masses. I've learned that the world doesn't accept good people, and that if you really want to stand out, you have to make it so that they can no longer ignore you or cast you away like nothing. You have to show them your worth, force them to respect you, and make it so that the world can never forget your name. But that's something you never really had to work at. Adopted into a privileged family, the only thing you ever had to worry about were crazed fans and the paparazzi stalking you and bad record sales. You gave up everything for this life, I really didn't have anything to lose. I think you really were put in Arkham for drug abuse, because that's what power became to you: a drug you believed you couldn't live without, you're worse than Hunter was. You're the pathetic one, because if you didn't have the power you do over people, you'd go mad like the rest of us."

She glowered at me, her face red with anger. I was angry too, but I refused to show her that. I wasn't about to give her the pleasure of seeing that she had gotten to me. Edward hung up the phone and came to sit next to me. I wanted to leave but was forced to stay put until Jess-Belle finished her call, and knowing her, it could take hours. But at least I had Edward to talk to, and the fact that I had no one to call meant that Jess-Belle wouldn't be getting the pleasure of eavesdropping on me.

Jess-Belle talked on the phone for a solid hour, and when she finally hung up, relieved, I left the room to go back to the stage to get started.

I paced around the stage for a while, trying to decide what talents I had that I could use. What was I good at? Did I even have any real talents outside of surviving fights to the death and killing other people? Surely I did, but at the moment I was having trouble figuring out what they were. I knew what Edward and Jess-Belle would be doing, which added more pressure, like I needed any more.

A few minutes later Edward joined me on the stage with a violin in hand. Jess-Belle sat down on the edge of the stage and began exercising her voice like we weren't there. As she did, she pulled out a small compact and worked on perfecting her already flawless hair, which somehow was never good enough for her.

He started tuning it as he said, "What are you going to do tonight?"

"I don't know yet, any ideas?"

"You should juggle knives while riding a unicycle and let us throw pies at you while you tell corny jokes. If you could pull that off Jess-Belle and I wouldn't stand a chance."

I laughed and said, "I'm going to keep working on it, but that is a good backup."

He finished tuning the violin and then rosined the bow, and when he had finished he began to play. I sat down and listened to the sweet sound of his music as I tried to decide what I would do. It occurred to me as I was sitting there that I could dance for my talent, I had always loved to dance and it had always been an escape for me from the hassles of life. But the problem was, I had never taken lessons. Like with the gymnastics, I had never been taught how to dance, it was just something I did. Until now I had never cared if I was doing it right or not, but now it was a matter of life and death. And how would I dance, exactly? I remembered a dream I had had as a child, the same dream that had inspired my costume. I replayed the dream in my head and then stood up to begin practicing. With each step I took, every twirl and leap, I felt more free than ever before. I moved to the sound of Edward's playing, and it felt like my spirit was soaring. I could forget all my problems, too bad it was only temporary.

"Wow, you're really good," said Edward as he paused in his playing.

"You really think so? Or are you just saying that to get on my good side?" I asked with a teasing grin.

"All feelings aside, you are really good. How long did you take lessons?"

"I've never had any lessons."

"Never, really? That's amazing, looks like you won't need to juggle after all. I'm starting to wonder if the Joker somehow set it up so that the three most talented people would make it this far to make this challenge possible."

"The Joker's not _that_ good, he's just really good at taking what's given to him and making the best of it."

"Either way, winning won't be easy for any of us," he said.

I continued to dance around the room, but I was careful to not push myself too hard. One mistake, and I could either twist an ankle or hurt myself in some other way and not be able to compete, which would lead to instant elimination.

A few hours later Joker came back. "So kids, know what you're going to do yet?"

"I'm going to sing, of course," said Jess-Belle.

"Why would I have expected any different?" said Joker sarcastically.

"I'll be playing the violin," said Edward.

"Which will cause all the teenage girls out there already swooning over you to pass out in their seats. Seriously, you wouldn't believe the amount of fan-mail you've gotten, Shadow-boy."

"Is there any for me?" asked Jess-Belle eagerly.

"You all have enough to drown in, but of course none of you have as much as I do. Nevertheless, the fact that you have so many fans out there will come in handy for tonight. Marionette, what will you be doing?"

"I'll be performing a dance that I came up with myself."

"Excellent, the crowd will love it. And to help you children be the best you can be tonight, some of the henchmen will be here to assist you. Whether it's back-up singers or a band to play music for you to dance to, whatever you need they're here for you. If I were you, if you plan on using them, I would go talk to them now and work something out. They're not very smart or reliable, so talk very slowly to them and use a lot of hand gestures. I'll be back soon to start the show, so make sure you're all prepared!"

As he walked away, a group of henchmen and hench-girls came onto the stage. Jess-Belle immediately chose three hench-girls and moved to the far end of the stage to practice with them. Edward ignored them and continued playing his violin, but I walked up to them to evaluate them.

"I'll be dancing," I said. "I have a specific dance in mind, can any of you play any instruments at all?"

A few raised their hands, and one guy said, "I played the recorder when I was a kid."

"Can any of you play real instruments?" I asked the others exasperatedly.

All except three people put their hands down. "I play the piano," said one woman.

"I play the viola," said a man.

"I play the flute," said another guy.

I hesitated, then said, "Okay great, I don't know anything about making music, but we'll make it work, somehow."

They left for a few minutes to get some instruments from the music room, and while they did so I asked one more henchman for help with my performance, though not as a musician. For the next several hours I worked to try to describe to them the music in my head, which was like a toddler trying to teach algebra to a class of college students. It's not like I was tone-deaf, but I just wasn't able to articulate the melody in my head into meaningful words. Needless to say, being musically challenged was making things extremely difficult, but they somehow managed to make sense of what I was trying to describe.

As we worked, to my surprise, I found myself wishing Robin was still here to compete against me. I wondered what his talent would be, probably throwing batarangs at apples on people's heads or performing some kind of bird mating dance; I laughed at the thought of that one. It was too bad that I hadn't ever gotten the chance to really fight and compete against him, but I figured I'd get the chance after I won the game. Assuming of course, that he hadn't given up crime-fighting after having been so traumatized by the Joker's game. That would be so disappointing.

Then again, that was assuming I would even win, because I had to wonder how much chance I stood against Edward and Jess-Belle in this particular challenge. Normally, I would feel pretty confident in my abilities, but in a talent competition, they had the upper-hand. Edward played the violin like no one else, putting any other musician to shame, and Jess-Belle had thousands of obsessed fans, and I highly doubted the Joker would spare me for a second time, not that I wanted him too. I didn't want to die, but if it was my time, I would rather face it then be spared by him again, because what kind of rogue would I be if I constantly had to have people save my butt? I didn't want him to save me, even if it was to tick off the others and keep the audience on their toes. Still, by the time we had decided what we would do and worked everything out, I felt like I really had a chance, if only a slim one.

"Ugh, you're all awful, mediocre singers!" Jess-Belle suddenly shouted at the hench-girls she had been trying to work with.

"This wasn't exactly in the job description, you know," one of them shot back.

"That's it, you're all fired. I'll do the song myself, since the three of you couldn't carry a tune in a wheelbarrow. I can't believe I'm being subjected to this."

The hench-girls stalked off angrily as Joker came back on the stage. "Show time, kids! Give 'em a performance they'll never forget!" He turned to the camera and said, "Good evening Gotham, Joker here again bringing you the only show worthy to be on the airwaves these days. Tonight our final three will be performing for your viewing pleasure, and for one night only you will decide who'll be pushing up daises. It's very simple really, just dial the phone number at the bottom of the screen to vote. Now I know how it goes on shows like these, no one ever votes for the right reasons. People vote for contestants they feel they can relate to, or players they're attracted to. You people never vote for someone based on how worthy they are to win, your vote is based solely on looks and personality! This isn't a beauty pageant, it's a talent competition, so tonight I'm going to ask you vote based on talent, skill, and performance only. Pick your favorite and vote for them as many times as you possibly can, because as you already know, unlike other game shows, the loser will be going home, but in a pine box. The person with the least amount of votes gets to give the Wheel a whirl, so if you want a certain someone to see the sun rise tomorrow you'd better vote like your life depends on it, because theirs do. First we'll have the Shadow of Death, get your phones ready!"

Everyone left the stage except Joker and Edward. The Joker stepped off to the side a bit as Edward positioned the violin under his chin and readied his bow. He then began to play, slowly and softly at first. It was a lovely, soothing melody that soon picked up in speed. He began to play so fast it was a wonder the violin didn't catch fire, yet it didn't sound any less beautiful than before. He played every note so perfectly, it was as if the instrument itself had been built just for him. I was glad he hadn't asked any of the henchmen to play with him, I doubted any of them could play half as well as him and would have ruined him, and even if they had been as good as him he wouldn't have needed them. He began to slow down again into that soft, sweet melody that he had started with, the same one he had played for me in the music room all those weeks ago. When he stopped playing, I found myself clapping along with some of the other henches.

Joker came to stand by Edward as he said, "Now let's see what the public thought of that." He pulled out a remote and a monitor that I hadn't noticed before came to life. On it were our names, and by Edward's name was his score of over four hundred and fifty thousand votes that was still rapidly growing.

"Well done, Shadow-boy!" said Joker as he clapped him on the back. "Next we'll have the Ace of Spades!"

Edward left the stage as Jess-Belle took his place. She smiled and winked at the camera to her fans, but then seamlessly rearranged her expression to one of sadness, and then began to sing.

"_The night was young, and so were we, beneath the old magnolia tree. _

_And as you said, "I love you so," the whippoorwill sang sweet and low. _

_The moon was low, our hearts were high, you said, "I will until I die."_

_And while we kissed, beneath the tree, the whippoorwill sang happily. _

_Oh whippoorwill, the tree is bare, he wonders still, why you're not there. _

_While all alone beneath the tree, where once you pledged your love to me. _

_My lonely heart cries out for you, the whippoorwill is crying, too. _

_The whippoorwill is crying, too."_

The words she sang and the way she sang them caused a feeling of dread to wash through me. Listening to her sing, it was obvious why her fans loved her so much. Even without music or back-up singers, she still sounded amazing, her singing was phenomenal. Not to mention the song itself was likely to touch people's hearts. After singing a sad song like that, I at first wondered if she had been singing it to an old boyfriend, but judging by her body language she was doing it only for the fans, which was smart.

Joker came by her side and directed our attention back to the monitor, which showed that Edward had nearly a million votes and Jess-Belle wasn't too far behind. He then announced me, and I drew in a deep, calming breath. I decided to focus not on winning, but on pleasing my audience. I had come to enjoy being in the spotlight, though not nearly as much as Jess-Belle, of course.

"Good luck out there Rosie, you're going to need it," said Jess-Belle smugly as she passed by me.

I took my place behind the curtain as we had planned and had one of the henchmen tie thin ropes around my ankles and wrists. I signaled for him to raise the curtains, and as he did my band started playing and I began to dance. My dance at first was like that of a ballerina in a music box, as was the music. I visualized the dream in my head. In the dream, there had been a marionette puppet being manipulated by a puppet master, her moves more graceful than mine. But as beautiful and graceful as she was, she was still trapped, completely controlled by her puppet master. She believed she needed her puppet master, or else she would fall and never get up. She was content and happy, like a figurine in a snow globe, trapped in a seemingly perfect little world.

But then suddenly her strings were cut by some unseen force, and she tumbled to the floor. I danced slowly and gracefully as she had as one of the henchman pretended to manipulate the strings as though I really were just a puppet. But then he took a pair of scissors and dramatically cut the strings, and I reacted accordingly by falling to the floor. In the dream the puppet tried to pick herself up, but struggled without the help of the strings that had bound her. She had been cut free, but she could barely stand. Never before had she known freedom, and tears rolled down her face, because she believed she would never dance again. I acted as she had, trying to pick myself up again but with much difficulty. But then the marionette began to realize that perhaps she didn't need the puppet master, and that maybe she could dance again on her own. She got back on her feet, and slowly, tentatively, she began to take small steps and dance again, however awkwardly. I did the same as the music began to pick up in speed just a little. With each second that passed, the doll's steps became more assured and her movements became fluid and graceful once more. I began to twirl and spin faster and leap into the air as the music increased speed to keep up, my own moves as lithe and artistic as the puppet in my dream, performing moves I didn't even know I was capable of.

The reason the dream had always stuck with me was because it resembled my life. I was like the puppet, in that I was tied to the world like the doll was attached to her strings. When the puppet had been cut loose she became free, but she at first did not know how to handle her freedom, and didn't know how to function. I had feared that I would be the same, in that if my strings were ever to be severed, that I would fall and never get up again. For years I'd wanted to cut those ties, but I had been unable to until the Joker's Circus. When I killed my attackers and was sent to Arkham, I began to sever those connections one by one, and with every challenge I was one string closer to severing all ties with the world completely, not that I'd had that many to begin with. Only then would I become something more than human, although I didn't know what that might be, but that only made me want it more. That was why I'd chosen the name Marionette.

I had been cut loose, yet here I was, dancing without my strings. I was free at last, and that knowledge put a smile on my face as I began to slow down as I neared the finale. I gradually came to a stop and posed elegantly as the musicians drew out their final notes. I found myself trying to catch my breath from the exertion as the Joker came to my side.

"How about that folks? Let's see what you people think of her." We looked to the monitor, and I saw that while Edward and Jess-Belle were neck-in-neck, I had very little votes.

"I'll give you people thirty more minutes to vote, and remember, your favorites are counting on you!"

I left the stage and sat down by Edward and Jess-Belle. As I turned to look back at the monitor, the Joker turned it off so we couldn't see our votes. None of us spoke, we were too keyed up and anxious waiting for our fates to be decided. Those thirty minutes were the longest in my life, and finally the Joker came back on stage and had us join him.

"I hope you all took my advice and voted, I don't care about your phone bill. Ready to see who you chose?" Joker turned the monitor back on, and I looked at the tally and couldn't believe my eyes. I had come in first by several thousand votes, while Edward had beaten Jess-Belle by just two votes.

"And the loser is… the Ace of Spades!" announced Joker.

"No!" shrieked Jess-Belle as she tried to run away. This was expected of course, and she was caught by a couple henchmen while a couple more rolled out the Wheel. I couldn't believe this, Jess-Belle had lost and I had won. Her victory had practically been guaranteed, but her fans had failed her. Had I really performed better than she had? I didn't know what to think.

"This is unfair! I've worked too hard, come too far to die now! You can't do this to me, my parents will-"

"They'll what, sue me?" said Joker mockingly. "Actually they'll probably thank me for getting rid of their spoiled brat. Not publicly of course, but I'll be expecting a thank-you letter in the mail. Now, let's spin that Wheel!"

Jess-Belle refused to spin the Wheel, so Joker happily did it for her. It landed on a picture of fire, and seconds later two hench-ladies came out and soaked her with gasoline while the other two henchmen held her in place by her arms. She kicked and screamed and tried to free herself, but to no avail.

"Any last words, Acey?" asked Joker.

Jess-Belle suddenly switched tactics. She quit screaming and struggling and looked up at Joker with wide, sad eyes and said, "Please Mr. Joker, don't do this to me. I'm sure we can work this out in… another way."

Watching Jess-Belle try to flirt with the Joker was almost laughable. She batted her eyelashes and did her best to look desirable in her final moments covered in gasoline, but Joker only laughed at her pitiful attempt.

"Why Acey, you make me blush! I'm flattered by your offer, but I've already got a girlfriend, I don't need two!" he laughed. He then produced a lighter and after lighting a flame threw it at her, instantly setting her entire body ablaze. She screamed in pure agony as the two henchmen released her so as not to get burned themselves. She fell to her knees as she was engulfed in the flames, flailing and writhing in agony as her body was consumed by the flames. Less than five minutes later her body stopped burning and she was no longer recognizable as a human being, much less as famous celebrity Jessica-Belle Monroe. So much for leaving a beautiful corpse, and I doubted that even if she did still have her good looks they would've have done her much good where she was going.

The Joker then came to stand between Edward and me and took both our hands in his and raised them in the air. "People, I give you your final two, the Marionette and the Shadow of Death! Tune in tomorrow for the spectacularly mind-blowing finale that you'll be talking about for weeks!"

xxxx

After the show ended, Edward and I decided to watch a movie. On our way to the TV room, we overheard the Joker talking to Harley on the phone in another room.

"Now Harls, there's no need to panic, I promise," he said sweetly, but beneath the surface his voice hinted at barely suppressed laughter. "Yes I know what happened, I was there, Cupcake. I know you're upset, but there was nothing I could do. What happened to her was her fault, it just wasn't meant to be. Look, just because she's gone doesn't mean it's the end of the world, I'm already working on a replacement, and it'll be even better. You never even liked her, why are you freaking out like this? Seriously Harl, you have no reason to be getting this upset, this is just a bump in the road. I know what I'm doing, didn't I tell you everything was going to be just fine? You trust me, don't you Harley-girl? Now don't start crying on me Harley, you know how much that annoys me. Suck it up and take it like a big girl, do it for me, okay Pumpkin Pie? Now you know better than that Harley, do you really want to throw away all my years of hard work on this game just because things aren't turning out like you wanted them too? Okay, I know, stupid question. No, don't come back yet, your Puddin' will take care of it, cross my heart and hope to die. But in return I need you to not watch the next episode, okay Honeybun? Because I want it to be a surprise, that's why! Oh sure yeah, run off to Pammy, you think I care? You go right on ahead, but if you do you're not coming back, I hope you realize that, and you won't ever get to meet the winner. Now that's more like it. You just sit tight and let Daddy take care of everything, and it'll all turn out fine, okay sweetie? Yes, I'll do all those things and more, I'll make it up to you, okay Pooh? Good, now just remember what I told you and there won't be any more problems. Sure, fine, give the Babies my love, whatever, bye Harls. Harley, I'm hanging up now, I don't want to hear about your new apartment. Yes, I know I called myself Puddin', quit giggling, this does not give you permission to call me by that ridiculous pet name of yours. I know you do Harls, be a good girl for Daddy, goodbye. "

"Well that was odd," said Edward once we'd heard him hang up.

"Tell me about it. All those pet names and the sappy talk, and he even referred to himself as Puddin', something fishy is definitely going on there," I replied.

"Nah, she probably just wants to come back early and he's not having it."

"I don't know, it didn't sound as simple as that. Something has really been bothering Harley lately, I could hear her crying and yelling at him on the phone, even from outside the room."

"Whatever it is, she'll bounce back. It's one of the advantages of being Harley. But forget about the clowns. You got any movie ideas?"

There was only one room with a TV in it, and although it didn't have cable there was a shelf packed with DVDs. We searched through them, trying to find one that we could both agree on.

"How about this one,_ Singin' in the Rain_? I've never seen it, but I've heard it's good," I suggested.

"I've never seen it either, but sure, why not," he agreed.

We went to the kitchen for some popcorn, and as we heated it up Cookie watched us with utter contempt in his eyes. The second the microwave beeped we took it out and ran back to the TV room to watch the movie. We sat down next to each other on the couch as the movie started. We were only a few minutes in when we both lost interest in the movie. I gazed into his dark gray eyes as he gazed into mine, and without any hesitation I pressed my lips fiercely against his. Our lips had only been locked for a second, however, when the door suddenly burst open and we bumped our heads together in surprise.

The Joker strode into the room humming some tune as he began looking through the DVDs. "Hm, let's see, I've seen that one, that's one of Harley's favorites so not happening, that one's good but I have to be in the mood for it, why do we even have this one?" He turned to us, as if just now realizing we were there. "Oh, hello children. Enjoying movie night?"

Neither of us spoke. He looked at the television and said, "Singin' in the Rain, huh? One of my favorites! Nice to see an appreciation for the classics in our youth today, maybe this generation's not quite as bad as I thought. Mind if I join you?" Not waiting for an answer, he moved to sit between us on the couch, forcing us to separate. He then draped his arms around our shoulders as though we were all good friends.

"I kind of wanted to sit next to Rose," said Edward, his anger hiding just below the surface.

"And I wanted a holiday created in honor of me called Joker Day, but when I tried to make it happen Bats ruined it!" he retorted.

I decided to keep my mouth shut and watch the movie, trying to pretend that this was all perfectly normal. This was the second time the Joker had interrupted us, and I wondered if he had impeccable timing or if he had caught us on one of the cameras and just wanted to amuse himself by ruining our romantic moments.

The Joker talked though the whole movie, commenting on everything from plot development to the performance of the actors to the effects used and the dialogue. He seemed to have something to say about everything that happened in the movie, and so by the time it was over I couldn't be sure if I liked it or not. I wasn't even entirely sure what the movie was supposed to be about.

"Well, that was fun," said Joker pleasantly. "You two should head off to bed, you'll need to be extra prepared for what I have planned for you tomorrow. I wasn't kidding when I said it would be out of this world, and you're more likely to win if you're not asleep. Goodnight kiddies!"

We left the room and went back to our dorms, and just as I had been about to go inside the girl's dorm, Edward took my hand in his and pulled me back.

"Don't go in there," he said. "Come stay with me."

"Is that even allowed?" I asked.

"Joker never said it wasn't, and he'll have no excuse to invade our privacy in there. Come on, our dorms are practically empty now, and it'll likely be our last night together."

"All right," I said, excited that I would get to spend this night with him.

He led me inside and we climbed into his bunk, which was barely big enough for the two of us.

"I can't believe one of us will win the game tomorrow," said Edward quietly. "It doesn't seem real that it's finally coming to an end."

"And the other will die," I reminded him.

"Maybe not. I love you Rose, and I don't want to live without you. Maybe we can find a way for both of us to get out of this alive so we don't have to say goodbye."

"You really think the Joker would allow that? Our relationship will only make it more enjoyable for him when he kills one of us," I pointed out. "Nothing more fun than taking star-crossed lovers and killing them in the most awesome and painful way possible, and on national TV no less."

"All I'm saying is that if there's a way for both of us to live, if there's some loophole that will keep us both alive that we haven't discovered yet, I want to find it. I know there probably won't be one, I know there's very little chance of us both surviving, but I'm willing to try. Aren't you?"

I kissed him again and said, "Of course I am, of course I'm willing to try. But if one of us does die tomorrow, I want you to know that I've enjoyed every second with you, even the ones when we were fighting or giving each other the cold shoulder."

"I've had many girlfriends in the past, but none as amazing as you."

We began to kiss again, every touch full of intense desire. I found his belt buckle again and undid it, this time in full control of myself.

He looked at me, eyes wide as he said, "Are you sure?"

"Positive. I want every part of you, I don't ever want to let you go," I said with a smile.

"You don't know how long I've been waiting for you to say those words," he said with a wide grin.

In our moment of passion, I felt more than just pleasure. I realized that Edward loved me, loved me like no one ever had before. He wanted me for me, he accepted me even though the rest of the world had turned its back on me. In that moment, I felt love for him, or at the very least, something that felt like love. I wanted to be with him until the day I died, and I knew that no matter what happened in tomorrow's challenge I would fight for him, so that hopefully we could both live and be together. Somehow, I would beat the Joker at his own game, I just didn't know how yet.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Author's Note:<strong> The song Jess-Belle sang is called Whippoorwill by Keely Smith, a beautiful song I heard in one of my college classes. We were watching a movie called Thunder Road learning about Moonshining and one of the characters sang this song. It's funny how I discovered it, but until then I didn't know what she should sing, but when I heard that song it just seemed to fit. _


	21. Chapter 21

The next morning I awoke in Edward's arms, and it felt like heaven. I was startled out of my blissed-out high, however, when the door was busted open and a group of henchmen stormed in, toting rather large guns. We both sat up quickly, with me using the blanket to cover myself.

"What's going on?" asked Edward angrily.

"We're to take you to your final challenge, no questions asked," one of them replied gruffly. "Get your clothes on and follow us, now."

The henchmen pretended to look away as I quickly put my clothes back on, and once Edward and I were dressed they motioned for us to follow them. One of the henchmen handed us both an energy bar and told us to eat on the way. The bar was bland and tasteless, but it satisfied my hunger.

They led us down the stairs and through the hall, until we reached the door that Joker had warned us to stay out of. They opened the door and ushered us in, but didn't follow. Inside, I was surprised to see that it was just an ordinary-looking utility closet, filled with mops and brooms and other such cleaning supplies.

"This is it?" Edward scoffed. "What's he going to do, make us face-off in an epic cleaning battle?"

"Good morning, my little dynamic duo!" Joker's voice rang out over the intercom. "And welcome to your final challenge! It's time to show me and the world what you're truly capable of. Through the doors before you are two pathways, one for each of you. There will be many obstacles on the way, each more difficult than the last. When you reach the end, you must secure your victory by killing your opponent. Just navigate your way through, and the last man or woman left standing wins, simple right? I suppose it's a good thing you two aren't close or anything, can you imagine, star-crossed lovers being forced to murder each other just to win a game? What a tragedy that would be," he chuckled.

"What doors? The only door in here is the one we came through," I said to the ceiling, since I couldn't see where the speaker was.

"Au contraire, silly girl. The doors are right in front of you, you'd see them if you would just open your eyes. Sometimes in life, if you can't see the way to go, it helps to remove the obstacles blocking your view."

Edward and I felt along the walls for the door, but there was only solid wall. I knocked on the wall and listened, and realized it was hollow.

"Edward, help me break down this wall. It's hollow, the doors must be behind it."

Luckily the room had plenty of tools, including an axe and a sledgehammer. I took the axe and Edward took the sledgehammer, and together we tore down the wall. It wasn't very hard to do, the wall was barely thicker than toilet paper. Behind it were two doors with bright, blinking neon words above them. One read Marionette, the other Shadow of Death.

"This is where we split up," said Edward as he set down the sledgehammer.

"Still think we can both get out alive?" I asked him skeptically.

"Probably not, but when there's a will there's a way. Who knows, maybe we're just smart enough to outsmart the Joker," he said with as much enthusiasm as he could muster in the face of our predicament.

"Here's hoping," I said as I grabbed the front of his shirt and pulled him to me and kissed him fiercely. I let go of him and said with a smile, "Either way, I'll see you on the other side."

"Good luck Rose," said Edward as he opened his door and I opened mine. I stole one more glance at his face before I entered the room. Maybe he was right, maybe we could both win.

Once I closed the door, I found myself in utter darkness. I couldn't even see my own hand in front of my face, and had to feel along the wall to guide myself. I couldn't tell how big the room was, if it even was a room. It felt more like a tunnel of some kind, though I had no way of knowing for sure. It was taking me downwards, whatever it was, which meant that the final challenge would be held in the Joker's basement. Exciting, right? I kept going until I literally walked into what felt like a door, banging my head on it, hard. As I rubbed my forehead, I opened the door and found myself blinded by incredibly bright lights. It took a few seconds for my eyes to adjust, and once they had I found myself inside a circus tent full of people.

There had to be over a hundred people in the stands cheering wildly, and in the center ring were many performers, and each of them appeared to be deformed in one way or another, like in a sideshow. I couldn't believe what I was seeing, what were all these people doing in Arkham City, in a circus in the basement of the Joker's mansion, no less? But then I looked closer, and realized that the way they were moving, there was something off about them. I walked up to two men whose bodies were conjoined at the stomach, and realized they were all animatronic.

"Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, prepare yourselves for the greatest show on earth!" said the ringmaster into a megaphone. "You've seen all kinds of mutants and oddities here today, but I've saved the best for last. Before you is the biggest freak of them all, the Marionette!"

A huge spotlight shown down on me, and the crowd began jeering and booing at me, as though I was a hideous beast in a cage. I ignored them, and spotted another door at the other end of the tent. I started making my way to the door, when suddenly the deformed robot performers began to attack me. Since they were robots and all I had to defend myself with was a knife, I couldn't fight them off, so I broke into a run. None of them had actual weapons, but their solid metal bodies would be more than enough to do plenty of damage. They were like zombies, but much faster, and I almost didn't make it to the door in time to escape.

Written on the door in what looked like blood mixed with glitter, were the words, _What makes a person a freak? A freak is someone who is extremely different from other people in society, they're abnormal from what is normally found in nature. If we're going by that definition, then who's to say that society isn't made up of freaks, and we aren't the normal ones?_

I pondered the door's words of twisted philosophy as I opened it and ran inside. The door led to some stairs that went in a downward spiral. I descended the stairs until I came to another door. The next room I came to was very small; the black walls were so close together I couldn't spread my arms out completely. I was standing on a rickety bridge that seemed stable enough, but as I began to cross it the walls suddenly exploded with dazzling colors, and the colors moved and danced in such a way that it felt like I were in a vortex of some kind. It made me feel dizzy, and crossing the already shaky bridge became nearly impossible. The illusion wouldn't let up, and my vertigo became so bad that when I was almost halfway across the bridge I had to crawl on my hands and knees the rest of the way. When I finally made it to the other side, the illusion finally stopped, but I was still very dizzy, and had to give myself a minute to recover and regain my equilibrium.

_Funny how so many things can distort our perception, and how one man can see the sky as blue, and another green. A woman might be perceived as a hideous monstrosity my one man, and be seen as an enchanting angel by another. How do we ever know that what we perceive is real? The mind likes to play tricks, what if what we believe about the world to be real, is only imagined? Perhaps we've been looking at the sky the wrong way, as well,_ read the words on the next door.

When I opened the door to the next room, I found that there was just enough floor to stand on, but I didn't realize this in time to keep from falling. I grabbed onto the ledge and pulled myself up, being careful to not lose my footing.

I took in my surroundings and saw that the room I was in was humongous, and that ten feet below the platform I was standing on were dozens of vats of bubbling green acid, and the only way across to the other side of the room to get to the next door would be to hop across several other platforms in front of me, all of them just big enough to stand on. There were also a few trapezes placed here and there that I would have to swing on. All my gymnastics training would finally be coming in handy, because I would need better than perfect balance and coordination to get through this one. One slip up, and it was game over. But I wasn't afraid, and I welcomed the challenge.

I leapt onto the first platform without difficulty, and then the next. Next was a trapeze, and though I had never used one before, I took hold of it and swung to the next platform, which was smaller than the others and I had to land on one foot. I nearly fell but managed to regain my balance before I took a nosedive into the acid. Someone in my family must have been a great gymnast and passed their skills down to me, because even though I was pretty good at it, I wouldn't be winning any Olympic medals anytime soon, it was a wonder I had even made it this far, and I still had a far ways to go.

I continued to leap from platform to platform, occasionally doing flips just for the heck of it, not caring that I could fall and die at any moment. The thrill of undertaking such a risky challenge and the mental effort of focusing on landing on each platform in just the right way was invigorating, and by the time I reached the other side I almost wished it hadn't ended so soon.

On the next door were the words, _If you can read this, it means you managed to cross the distance without falling and failing your challenge. People don't realize how many pitfalls they come across every day, some that are obvious, others not so obvious. The biggest threat to their safety, however, is not me, though you may choose to not believe it. No, their biggest threat is the choices of those around them. It never occurs to anyone how much their choices affect those around them, or how one small, insignificant decision made by someone they've never met or ever will meet can set off a chain of reactions that can change their life forever. One choice can end a life or save it, and once you've made your choice, there is always "the road not taken." Full of what-ifs and what-might-have-beens, the road not taken has the power to drive a man mad thinking about how differently his life might have been, had he made a different choice. Everyone is a victim of their own choices and other people's choices, we're all tied to the world by the same string, you can't do anything without affecting someone else. On the bright side though, it means you're never as alone you might think you are._

I opened the door to the next room, and immediately I was jumped by Batman, Robin, Nightwing, and Batgirl all at once. Actually, it wasn't technically them, I realized after taking a closer look. They were all four of them robots, but the likeness they shared with their real-life counterparts was stunning. They also knew the original's signature moves and attacks, but being animatronic, they were unable to execute them nearly as well as the real deals. Still, they would by no means be easy to take down.

Having been taken by surprise, I had to get away from them so that I could face them. Batgirl got a good hit on my shoulder before I could move out of their reach, and that blow _really_ hurt. As I tried to think of a way to take on the four vigilante-bots at once and win, I had to dodge their attacks, which was easier said than done. The room wasn't very big and the door was bolted shut, so I would have to take down the bots before I could continue. The question was, how? I was only human after all, facing four machines programmed specifically to end me quickly, and with no weapons on me that would work on solid-metal robots, I didn't stand much chance. Then again, they probably had some kind of weak spot or off-switch, and if I could find it, then I could shut them down and move on.

I spun out of Robin's reach and grabbed Batman and Nightwing and rammed their heads together, causing them to temporarily malfunction. It was then that I realized how poorly constructed these bots were, and that while still incredibly deadly, taking them down was possible. The way they were made, an off-switch wouldn't be necessary.

I leapt on top of the Robin-bot and slammed its head into the wall and moved back to face Batgirl again. I darted in and out of her reach as she tried again and again to pummel me. I then moved in front of Nightwing and then ducked as she tried to kick me, causing her to kick him instead and send his head flying. His body collapsed to the floor as sparks flew from the severed wires.

"You know, if it weren't for the wires, I wouldn't be able to tell you guys apart from your flesh and blood doppelgangers," I said as I leapt onto the Batman-bot's back, wrapping my legs around his midsection and using his metal bat ears to try to steer him. "You have cold, hard exteriors and nothing going on upstairs! The Joker really outdid himself on this one, the similarities are uncanny."

In an attempt to get me off of him, the Batman-bot ran head-first into the wall, and I managed to jump off just as he collided with the solid metal wall, breaking his head and chest into pieces. So much for artificial intelligence. His body continued to move for a few seconds longer, but then stilled and ceased functioning.

The Batgirl-bot and Robin-bot ganged up on me, and I jumped into the air and kicked Batgirl in the chest, sending her back and causing sparks to fly from her chest, but she wasn't out of the game yet. She made a grab for me, and I felt her metal nails dig into the skin of my neck, leaving three bleeding scratch marks. I skirted out of Robin's path as he ran at me and grabbed Batgirl and tackled her to the floor. I then repeatedly smashed her head into the floor until it was nothing more than broken pieces of metal.

"So it's just you and me now, is it? My shiny friend," I said as I tripped the Robin-bot, but he caught himself before he fell. "Too bad the original copy isn't here to fight me himself, but you'll do just fine this time. Tell me, are you updated with the latest brooding and scowling software?"

I had to admit, I was a bit disappointed when he didn't quip back, even though I knew full well that he wasn't capable of speaking or even thinking for that matter. His sole mission was to kill me, and if he were to succeed, he'd likely shut down, having completed his mission and having no other purpose. The robot was so much like the real thing it was cute.

The Robin-bot connected his fist with the side of my head, and even though I moved at just the right time to keep him from giving me a concussion, it felt like he'd busted open my skull, which only made me laugh despite the pain. Because he had been programmed to kill me, he wouldn't be showing me any mercy like the real Robin would. He wouldn't quit and haul my butt back to Arkham when he was done pummeling me, he was going in for the kill. It was likely the only time there'd be a real chance of death, at least at the hand of a vigilante, and if it hadn't been for it being a robot instead of the real-deal, it would have turned me on.

I leapt on his back as I had with the Batman-bot and attempted to drive him into the wall as he did everything he could to throw me off. It was like riding a wild bull, if that bull was a metallic crime-fighting stick-in-the-mud teenager. He pulled at me and tried to throw me off, he even threw himself down on the floor, and if he had been much heavier, he would have crushed my ribcage. As it was, underneath him on the floor, his weight made it impossible to draw in even the smallest of breaths. He stayed in that same position, somehow knowing that if he did long enough I would suffocate. I had to act fast if I was to survive, so I put my fingers under his chin and pulled as hard as I could, black spots exploding before my eyes as I did so. My lungs screamed for oxygen, it was like I was drowning in a sea of air. With my remaining strength, I gave one final pull, and his head came off. Without him pinning me down anymore, I was finally able to roll the thing off of me and greedily gasp for breath.

Once I had more or less caught my breath, I glanced once more at the destroyed hunks of metal before me and said, "Looks like you tin-men could use some oil."

I skipped across the room and to the next door, which had written on it, _Humanity in its lowest, and most hilarious, form. Do you dare enter the Hall of Truth? For once you enter, there is no turning back, and the truth is often painful, especially to the eyes of those who refuse to see._

When I opened the door, the first thing I noticed was the music playing. It was the type of music you would typically hear at a carnival or circus, but it was off-key and instead of sounding fun and whimsical, it sounded eerie and wrong. It made me feel like killer clowns or crazed acrobats and jugglers were hiding in the shadows, waiting for me to let my guard down so that they could come out and kill me, and I loved it. The second thing I noticed were the glass walls on both sides of the room, and behind them were more animatronics that seemed to be acting out different scenes. The way they were separated reminded me of how they separated lunatics in Arkham, with each scene playing out in its own little glass cage. Each scene showed some kind of horrific, tragic, depraved, or gruesome scene, such as a destitute slave woman being forced to sell her oldest child to pay for food for her younger children, and a man being attacked and eaten by the dog who had once been his best friend.

As I continued on, I couldn't help but look at the disturbing scenes surrounding me, there were dozens of them. A toddler, holding a bloody knife over his dead mother. A woman screaming over her dead lover's body after a car crash that had been her fault. There were also scenes of people doing insane things, such as a woman cutting open her arms with a shard of glass and stuffing worms inside her wounds and giggling madly. These scenes, and the screams and the howls of mad laughter, depicted humanity at its lowest level. A normal, feeling person couldn't walk through this maze without feeling something, without breaking down and feeling the pain within themselves that was so vividly and graphically depicted in each scene. Yet I felt nothing. In fact, I even found some of them to be rather humorous, and I realized I was sliding even further down the pit of insanity. That should have scared me, and that knowledge made it even funnier.

I continued through the hall, passing by other scenes such as a young teenage girl finding out her life is being cut short by cancer. Another showed a man crying over his wife and child, both having died in childbirth. Another showed a toddler get hit by a car, and even though many passed by no one stopped to help because they didn't want to get involved. Another showed a judge letting a mob boss and convicted murderer go free after being paid off, and another showed a man being sent to jail for killing his child's murderer after the man was found not guilty. Some showed corruption, some showed extreme pain, others showed fear and travesty, and some showed just plain indifference, the worst of them all, really. The last one I came to, right next to the door, was bigger than all the rest and displayed a dying world. The land had been ravaged and devastated by fire and flood and other such disasters; children ran around shrieking, looking for someone to tell them everything would be all right. Mothers cried out for their lost or dead children, and men fell on their faces, unable to cope with the realization of how pointless their lives were. The sun was blotted out by billions of fiery locusts, and a terrible darkness pervaded the land. Not bad really. I took a minute to admire it.

The next door had the words scrawled on it: _In the next room, you'll be the only soul inside, but you'll find that you're not alone. But reflect before you enter, because you may not be the same person coming out, as you were going in._

I opened the door and left the room, and entered one made up entirely of mirrors. The mirrors were, as one would expect, like the ones in a funhouse where they humorously distort the image of the body. I couldn't tell how large the room was, and unsurprisingly I could see no doors leading out. As I walked through it, trying to find my way out, I realized that the room was built like a maze. As I tried to navigate through the seemingly endless maze, I began to feel queasy. It was easy to ignore, at first, but then it grew worse, and I became nauseous. The room around me began to spin, and I felt such strong disorientation and vertigo that I collapsed to the floor and vomited; it felt like I was back in the dizzy-tunnel, except this time it was more powerful and coming from within. At first I wondered what could possibly be wrong with me, but then it hit me: I hadn't taken my pills that morning or the night before. I realized that I was actually dying.

"No," I groaned as I tried to get back on my feet. "It can't end like this, I've come too far to die from some stupid disease." My legs were like jello and couldn't support my weight, and standing made the dizziness even worse, and so fell on my face, my head hit the floor and pain shot through my skull, but I barely registered it. I looked up at the ceiling; all I saw were more mirrors, but I knew there had to be hidden cameras in here, recording me dying on the floor and airing it for the entire country to see. "Joker, I need my medicine," I croaked, barely able to speak as my mouth had become dry as cotton. "Please, have one of the henchmen bring it to me or something. I know you're probably enjoying this, but if I die here it's going to be very anti-climactic, and the finale will suck." My only hope now was that Joker would have my pills brought to me, if only to draw out the suspense and tension and action. He would want the greatest ending possible, he would want Edward and I to fight to the death, and so he would have to give me my pills.

Except he didn't. I waited and waited, but no one ever came. I almost resorted to begging several times, but if I was going to die like this I had to try to keep as much of my dignity intact as possible.

I don't know how long I laid on the floor, but at some point I began to feel a strange stinging sensation in my skin, as though I were being stung by thousands of bees. My vision became fuzzy, so I couldn't look at my skin to see if a rash was forming. My pulse thundered in my ears; and the sting was excruciating, it was like my skin was on fire, but it only got worse. As my skin stung and burned, I began to feel a powerful itch. It was like someone had dumped itching powder all over my body, and I couldn't stop myself from scratching all over. As I scratched and clawed at my skin, the dizziness and nausea began to fade, and I could see again. But when I caught sight of myself in the mirror, I almost wished I couldn't see the face staring back at me.

The mirror before me distorted my image to make me look smaller and skinnier, but I could clearly see that there was something terribly wrong with me. My skin was incredibly pale, I looked like a corpse, it was as if the blood was being drained out of me. My hair was also changing; instead of light blonde it was changing to a shade of color I had no name for. I couldn't believe my eyes, what kind of disorder caused symptoms like these? It made no sense, yet it was happening to me right before my eyes.

All my scratching did nothing to calm the itch and the stinging only increased, and I felt myself blacking out, falling in and out of consciousness, but it didn't matter if I was awake or passed out, the agony continued regardless. I lost all sense of time, it felt like I had been laying there for days. I wanted to scream, but I knew it would be pointless to do so.

Then finally, the symptoms began to fade. The burn slowly disappeared, as did the itch, starting with my fingers and toes and working up through my body until both were gone completely. I was able to regain consciousness and to think clearly, and I felt like my old self, as though nothing had happened. At first I was relieved, but when I looked at the mirror, I let out a piercing scream of utter horror.

My skin had gone from corpse white to bone white. I was whiter than chalk, whiter than ivory, whiter than snow. I looked down at my trembling hands, and saw that my fingernails were now pitch black. My once blonde hair was now bright, emerald green, as if someone had dyed it with kool-aid. My lips were blood red; in fact it seemed that the only thing that hadn't changed about my appearance were my eyes, they were still baby-blue. Tentatively, I reached out with my hand and touched my reflection, unable to comprehend what was happening to me.

I looked down at my hands and rubbed the skin furiously, trying desperately to wipe away the white like paint, but in vain. I ripped off my boots and leggings and found to my dismay that my feet and toes were also stark white, and each toenail was also black, as black as death itself. I pulled at my hair, willing the green locks to not be mine, but all it did was hurt my scalp. I pulled out the ribbons keeping my hair up and my once-blonde ringlets cascaded down my back like a green waterfall.

I was hyperventilating; for the first time in a long time I was truly afraid. I even resorted to pinching myself, praying that this was just a nightmare and that I would wake up, but there was no denying it. It didn't seem real, it had to be someone else, the ghostly white face staring back at me couldn't be mine, but it was. I was no longer a puppet. I was a clown puppet.

"This is the Joker's doing," I told myself, willing my words to be true. "He probably did it to Edward too, because we're the last ones, he did it for a laugh, and to mark us as his. It's just a prank, a harmless, non-permanent prank."

I pulled my leggings and boots back on and put my hair back in pigtails. I took a deep breath and willed myself to calm down, and I stood up, my legs a bit shaky from the ordeal. I felt tired from the ordeal, as though the transformation had drained me. It had to have been something in the air, or perhaps one of the henchmen had stuck me with a needle while I was asleep, and the effects hadn't kicked in until now. But why wasn't I dead? Why hadn't my blood disorder killed me? I decided to think about it later, as I had more important things to do right now. I couldn't stand to look at my hideous reflection anymore, so I punched the mirror before me, shattering the glass and cutting my hand. I broke every mirror I passed, until I finally found the door.

_The road of life is full of ups and downs, one minute you're at the top of the world, and the next you're on a downward spiral. More often than not though, before you can reach the end, you find that you've taken the wrong path, or that your train has derailed. It's then that you realize there never was a path in the first place, and that you only thought there was a finish line, when really there was only ever a dead end._

The next room I found myself in had a roller coaster in it, I was surprised to see. Just how big was this place, anyway? This underground circus must have been at least as big as Arkham City, and probably reached into Gotham, as well. I couldn't see where it led, as it would go through a dark hole in the wall. I climbed into the seat and the bar automatically came down, trapping me inside. It then began to move, slowly at first but quickly gained speed until it was rocketing down the tracks. The weird carnival music was still playing, but was replaced by the Joker's voice.

"How ya doin' down there, kiddies? You seem upset, nervous. Afraid of coming in second place? Or maybe the last few, tiny threads keeping you sane are being snipped one by one? I think that's it, because you two have never looked crazier. I understand that going insane can be scary at first, even if you're already mostly there. That's why I have this song here to cheer you up. I wrote it to help our dear Commissioner Gordon cope after his daughter's tragic accident. He didn't appreciate it very much, but perhaps you will.

_When the world is full of care and every headline screams despair,_

_When the news are rape, starvation, war, and life is vile... Then there's a certain thing I do which I shall pass along to you that's always guaranteed to make me smile. _

_I go Loo-oo-oony, as a light bulb battered bug! Simply Loo-oo-oony, sometimes foam and chew the rug... Mister, life is swell in a padded cell, it'll chase those blues away! You can trade your gloom for a rubber room and injections twice a day!"_

I listened to the Joker's song as the ride took many twists and turns and looped upside down several times. Normally I would have enjoyed it, but I wasn't in the mood to enjoy anything at the moment. The ride didn't last very long, and finally stopped in front of yet another door with the words written on it:

_What secrets doth lay hidden in a man's heart? Bring him down to his knees, break him down and build him up again, and the secrets will reveal themselves, as well as other things kept hidden in his heart, like his true nature. After all, when we hit our lowest point, we are open to the greatest change._

This door opened to reveal a tiny hallway with a few doors on either side. But at the end was a door with a sign on it that read, _Chuckles' Playhouse_. I opened it, and found myself in a dark room harshly illuminated by bright white lights. There was a bed with restraining straps splattered with blood. Next to it was a small table with all sorts of things on it, things that I could only assume had been used to torture someone, and I realized that someone had been Robin. I thought he had escaped, but apparently the Joker had been keeping him here in secret. Some of the items on the table you'd expect to be used for torture, such as several different chemicals and serums, pliers, a screwdriver, sparking wires, and the like. But others weren't as expected, such as a bloody pizza cutter, cayenne pepper, a feather, and other strange "tools". There was a TV facing the bed, and on top of it was a video tape that was labeled, _Educating Chuckles: Wholesome Family Entertainment._ I would have to watch that later. There were other videos too, and judging by their titles they weren't unlike the scenes I had witnessed earlier. I noticed Robin's costume on the floor, ripped to shreds, and there was a newspaper beside it. The front page was a story from a while back when Batman and Robin had put an end to one of Gotham's most dangerous mob bosses, and some very lucky kid had managed to take a snapshot of them as they were fleeing the scene. The newspaper was torn in half, torn right between Batman and Robin.

The next door was right in front of me; on it were the words: _Before you lies the final challenge of the Joker's Circus. Please leave any and all sanity at the door, as there's no place for that stuff here. Thank you, have a nice day._

I left the Joker's torture chamber and found myself in an arena. It was reminiscent of Roman coliseums, where people were forced to fight to the death. In other words, a very fitting setting for the finale. In the stands were more animatronics, shouting for blood.

"Rose?" I heard someone say.

I turned and saw Edward staring at me, his eyes wide and his mouth hanging open. He looked battered and bruised and he was favoring one leg over the other, and I wondered what he had faced, if his challenges had been the same as mine off different. But I think the first thing I noticed about him was the fact that he still looked normal, no chalk-white skin or green hair, just as he had before, which unsettled me greatly.

"Edward, I-"

"What happened to you?" he asked, still gaping at me, looking utterly appalled by my appearance.

"I don't know, it just happened along the way. I don't know what's going on or why this is happening to me, but it doesn't matter, right? We're still going to get through this, together, like you said."

"Rose, you can't just not know how this happened, it didn't just magically happen on its own. What_ happened_ to you?" Edward demanded.

"The Joker must have done this to me, I just don't know how he did it. It happened right after I realized I hadn't taken my pills, he must have put some kind of chemical in the air that did this, I don't know! I'm sure it's only temporary, so you can stop looking at me like I'm a freak." I took a step towards him, but he took a step back.

"But you are a freak," said Edward, his expression growing dark and furious. "Why would Joker do it to you and not me? Don't you see? He's already chosen you! And why not? You're both practically the same. You fight alike, you both have that weird logic that only you understand, and now you even look just alike! No wonder he let you live before, you're the one he wanted all along! But it wasn't enough to just let you win, oh no, he had to make you like this. Or maybe he didn't. Maybe you were already like this, even before the game started."

"What are you talking about?" I shouted, my anger rising, but not as much as my fear.

"Think about it, why aren't you dead? If those pills you were taking were all that were keeping you alive, then why didn't you die when you didn't take them? Instead of dying, you became this… This thing! I don't know what you are, but I don't like it. You can forget about getting out together, I don't care if Joker already chose you, I am not dying for you Rose."

"So much for love then, huh?" I felt a twinge of hurt and betrayal in my chest, but those emotions were small and insignificant compared to the fury bubbling inside me.

Edward had made a fool of me, he had tricked me into thinking he cared about me, had fooled me into believing that he was the one person on the face of the earth who would be forever scarred if I died. He'd said he loved me, but he'd only said those things to get in my pants; his affection for me had only ever been skin-deep. He didn't care about me, he had lusted only for my body, but now that I looked like a hideous freak of nature, I was worthless and expendable to him. He wouldn't lose any sleep over killing me, he'd find some other girl to take my place, one that was normal and beautiful. In his eyes, I was no longer a prize to be won, but an abomination to be destroyed. But the worst part was, he had awakened feelings inside me that I hadn't wanted to feel. In a way they felt good, but I would have preferred for them to have never existed at all. I had desired love as a child, but at some point I had come to realize that I neither needed it nor wanted it. But with him, I had believed that I did want it, believed that we had something, a true connection, and that the foreign feelings in my chest weren't a bad thing. I had given myself to him completely, and he was treating that like it was worth nothing, less than nothing. I wished I had never slept with him, wished I had never allowed myself to become so vulnerable to him, but I had.

I pulled out my knife and ran at him. I made a long gash down the side of his face before he moved to retaliate. He drew his own knife and came at me as well, and for a few short seconds we circled and danced around each other, looking for an opening. Before I even saw an opening, I made another dive for his chest, and the fact that he had expected me to keep circling and waiting instead of diving in headfirst, I had caught him off guard. I pounced on top of him and held my knife to his throat. I yanked his knife away from him and threw it away. He tried to fight me off, but every time he did I would shove the knife deeper against his throat, pressing deeper each time.

"Rose, don't do this. I know you still love me, you still want me, don't do it," he said softly as he realized he couldn't win.

"Put a sock in it, Gage. I'd tell you to save it for someone who cares, but you won't get the chance," I said as I gritted my teeth and plunged my knife deep in his chest and he screamed in terrible pain. I cut through meat and tissue until I reached his heart as he pleaded for mercy, but it was hard to understand him through the blood he kept coughing up. He convulsed violently as I cut away at the veins and arteries connecting his heart to the rest of him, and then I reached in with my hand and pulled out his heart and held it high above my head for the world to see. I let loose a shout of victory, caught up in the exhilarating moment of murdering my jerk boyfriend.

It was weird, but murdering him was somehow more intimate than everything else that had happened between us before this. Every touch, every look, every kiss… it all paled in comparison to how good this felt. I still hated him more than I'd ever hated anyone before, but it was like I felt closer to him by killing him than I ever had while he was alive. Ending his life, feeling the warmth of his blood on my hands, watching that spark of life vanish from his gorgeous eyes, felt more intimate and pleasurable than our night of passion by far, which I took to be a pretty good sign that I really had lost my marbles.

I stood up off his body, once again soaked in blood. When the game had just begun, Harley had taught us how to get blood stains out of clothes, but I had a feeling that this time I would have to get a new costume.

I looked down at Edward's lifeless corpse, and I took his heart, my trophy, and threw it over my shoulder and felt my hatred of him dissipate, to be replaced with the indifference I felt towards everyone in general. I no longer cared about what he had done to me, and it didn't matter because I'd had the last laugh. But now all I could think about was my new skin problem.

"Well, shoot the neighbors and drown the neighbor's kids, we have a winner! Citizens of Gotham and anyone else watching, I give you the grand champion of the Joker's Circus: the Marionette!" announced the Joker's voice over the intercom. The robots in the stands went wild and began cheering my name, and a red X suddenly appeared out of nowhere a few feet away from me. Having nowhere else to go, I moved to stand on it. As soon as I did, the floor gave way beneath me and I fell, not very far, and landed on an old mattress. As I stood, I heard people cheering and chanting my name. I looked and saw that it was most of the Joker's henchmen, if not all, and they were all wearing party hats and throwing confetti into the air. As they clapped, they pointed in the direction I was supposed to go in, and I followed their directions to a final door, much bigger than the others and painted bright green and lavender. I opened the door, and found myself in a dimly lit room. At the far end was the Joker, sitting on a high throne made entirely of toys and gags. He leapt from his seat and picked me up and spun me around in a circle.

"Congratulations Snow, you did it! You really, really did it! I knew you could do it, all along I knew you'd win!" he said as he put me down on my feet, his smile wider than I'd ever seen it, which was really saying something. His laughter was full of mirth and joy, as though this was the happiest day of his life. I grabbed him by his bowtie and pulled him down to my level so I could look him in the eye.

"What. Did. You. Do. To me?" I demanded in a deadly whisper.

Joker ignored me and turned his head towards the shadows and said, "Chuckles, go find Harley and get ready to leave, but don't tell her who won, I don't care if she tries to threaten you into spilling the beans. Snow and I will be along in a jiffy, we just have a thing or two to talk about."

"Chuckles" came out into the light, and I nearly gasped when I saw him. Robin's face was no longer painted to look like a clown, his skin had been bleached white, and his face had been mutilated so that his mouth was now pulled into a permanent grin. He was also wearing a suit like Joker's, the only thing left that could identify him as Robin was his mask, which had been left alone. Robin nodded obediently and ran out a door, making me wonder what exactly the Joker had done to him.

"Answer my question, clown," I growled through my teeth. "What did you do to me? Why do I look like this, and how do I fix it? Tell me right now or so help me I will kill you."

The Joker turned back to face me, his expression a mix of pity and suppressed mirth. "Why my dear child, my poor, ignorant little lamb, I thought it'd be obvious by now. Rose, Marionette, Snow, you're my _daughter_."

* * *

><p><em><strong>Author's Notes: <strong>__What! Rose is the Joker's daughter? Who saw this coming? I'm sure some of you are freaking out at this, while a lot of you are saying to yourselves, "I totally called it." But even though the greatest mystery has (finally) been solved, this still leaves a lot of unanswered questions. The Joker will finally straighten this whole thing out in the next chapter, so this is your last chance to guess at what you think the Joker's plan was, and how Rose and The Joker's Circus came to be in the first place. Whether you want to leave a review or PM me your guess, I'm curious as to what you guys think is going on here, because knowing the Joker it's not going to be as simple as, "Rose, I am your father. Join me, and together we shall rule Gotham City as father and daughter." Who knows, you might already have the entire mystery solved and not even know it, in which case your detective skills would put Batman's to shame and I would be greatly impressed and slightly creeped out. Some of you have already guessed, and they've been really good guesses, I might add. Also, thanks to everyone who's read the story as I've written it and to those of you who have reviewed, it's been a wild and crazy ride, but it's not over yet! Not by a long shot, because even though the Joker's Circus may be over, the Joker's still got a trick or two up his sleeve. But I do hope you've enjoyed the story thus far, and that you'll stick around for the rest of it._

_And here we… go._


	22. Chapter 22

His words took a long few moments to sink in, but once they did it was like someone had hit me with a truck. I couldn't breathe, couldn't think. This wasn't happening, it couldn't be.

"No, you're lying," I said, sounding unconvincing even to myself. It was all I could really think to say in my stunned state.

"Denial isn't just a river in Egypt, you know. Why on earth would I lie about something like this?" he asked, doing a poor job of suppressing his amusement. "What would I have to gain? Think about it, it would all make sense if you would just strap on your thinking cap for once and put the pieces together. Use that noggin of yours, you're smarter than most people, you should have figured it out long before now."

"If I had thought that, it would have meant I was paranoid and delusional, not a good detective," I pointed out.

He laughed at that and said, "Yes, I guess it would. So what's it going to take to get you to believe me? Your complexion doesn't seem to be doing the job, what do I have to do? Take a paternity test? Oh I know, let's go on the _Maury_ show, he'll straighten this out for us."

"I guess it makes sense for you to be my father, what with this skin condition and all, but it can't really be true, it can't be," I said as I wrapped my arms around my chest, trying to hold myself together while my whole world fell apart around me. "I mean, I don't have parents, I just don't."

"Is that so?" said Joker mockingly, obviously enjoying my dismay. "Then where did you come from? An egg? Or maybe you're a robot, or a science experiment gone horribly wrong."

I ignored his sarcasm and said, "If this is true, then why did you give me away and put me through all this? And if you're my father, that means Harley is my… oh God."

"I know, it must be pretty awful realizing that Harley is your mother," said Joker with a smirk. "Don't worry kiddo, all will be explained shortly. Right now though, we need to get out of here and fast."

"Why, what's going on?" I asked. I still had a million questions I wanted answers to, but at that moment I was too overwhelmed to put them into words.

"At this very moment, Bats and the police are swarming all through Arkham City. They figured out how to take down the shield, and they're trying to ambush us. But don't worry, I thought of everything, and we will have escaped long before they get here. But we need to move quickly, we have no time to waste," he said as he grabbed me by the hand and pulled me through a hidden door which led into a dark tunnel. He released my hand and broke into a run and I tried to keep up with him, which was difficult given his longer strides. "We'll be facing off with Guano-man soon enough, but not yet. I'm almost ready for him, but there are still things that must be taken care of first. But he won't be kept waiting long."

**~Outside Arkham City~**

Batman and the police were waiting just outside the shield to Arkham City, which would be lowered any second. He had been told that the finale was going on, but he didn't have the time to watch it, nor did he really need to. Oracle had told him what had happened, that the girl Rose had won and that they were underground, but she didn't have any news to report on Robin. Rose's now clownish appearance was being broadcast on every screen in Gotham as trumpets blared and streamers rained down. At the moment no one particularly cared how he had set up the trumpets or streamers, or even how Rose's appearance had transformed so drastically, they were too focused on catching the madman himself.

The shield finally came down, but as it did several naked bodies strung up on hooks came down before them. There were seventeen bodies, some fresh and some horribly decayed, and he realized they were the bodies of the contestants that had lost. On each of their bare chests was a letter cut into their skin, spelling out the words _come and join the fun_.

As he gazed at the gruesome sight before him, Batman thought back nineteen years, to when he had saved the Joker's life in Arkham city.

"_Quick, the cure! What are you waiting for? Come on! I've killed your girlfriend, poisoned Gotham, and hell, it's not even breakfast! But so what, we all know you'll save me," _the Joker had said, his every breath heavily labored.

"_Every decision you've ever made ends with death and misery_,"he replied darkly as he stared at the vial in his hand, knowing that he held the key to the Joker's life."_People die, I stop you. You'll just break out and do it again._"

"_Think of it as a running gag!_" he said as he leapt on his back and stabbed him in the arm. Batman cried out in pain and dropped the vial as he threw the Joker off of him. For a split second he knew that the vial had to have broken, yet when he looked down, he saw that the vial had somehow miraculously hit the floor in just the right way to keep from shattering. Batman quickly grabbed the cure and held it before the Joker, who stared at him like a two year old begging for a cookie.

He coughed and then rasped, "_You're really going to let me die, aren't you? I didn't think you had it in you, and for that I give you a gold star!_"

As he thought of Talia, Jason, and the thousands of others who had suffered and died at his hand, not to mention the victims like Barbara, who still lived but would never be able to forget the cruelty he had subjected them to, he was sorely tempted to just let the clown finally die. It technically wouldn't have counted as murder, because the Joker had brought this on himself. But it wasn't his place to decide punishment, only to enforce justice. He would not give up everything he believed in for this man, he wasn't worth it.

Batman held out the vial and said, "_Take it._"

The Joker's eyes widened as he looked at the cure, then at Batman, then at the cure again, then at Batman again. "_Actually, I'm good. I like this much better,_" he said with a smile. "_Don't you just love happy endings?_"

"_Take. It_," said Batman, his voice so full of will and force and power that even the Joker couldn't refuse.

"_Well, if you insist_," shrugged Joker as he took the vial. "_Weren't quite ready yet to let your BFF kick the bucket just yet, were you? Aw Batsy, you sentimental fool, you're such a delightful playmate_. _Bottoms up!"_ he said as he tipped up the vial and down the cure.

For a moment nothing happened, then all of a sudden he seized up and began to convulse, but only for a few seconds. His eyes closed and he stopped breathing. Batman checked for a pulse and found none, and realized that it was too late for the Joker, and the cure couldn't help him. But then his eyes shot open and he gasped, still alive. Batman knew his life was still in danger, not just because his body was far from healed, but also from all the countless people who wanted nothing more to tear him limb from limb, so he snuck him away to an abandoned building, still in Arkham city.

For almost two days the Joker remained unconscious, but when he finally awoke, he was a changed man.

"_Wh-Where am I?_" he asked, confused. "_What's going on?_"

"_What do you remember?_" asked Batman as he entered the room. The Joker was strapped down to a bed, hooked up to an IV.

"_I… I remember everything, everything. It's all too much, their faces, every time I close my eyes all I see are their faces! I can hear their screams, their pleas for mercy, I see the light leave their eyes. Oh lord, what have I done? What have I done!_"

Anyone else would have assumed the Joker was faking, but the Batman was a master at reading body language and could tell the Joker was sincere, although he did have some momentary doubts at first. He was surprised by the effect the cure was having on the clown before him, but he wondered how long it would last. The Joker was experiencing clarity in his mind for the first time in many years. To hope that the change was permanent would be asking far too much.

The Joker fixed his eyes on Batman and said, "_Why did you do it? Why would you save a monster like me?_"

"_Because I swore to never kill, because it's not my place_."

"_But look at what you've done!_" cried Joker hysterically. "_By not killing me you've allowed me to leave a bloody trail wherever I go, with you always behind me attempting in vain to mop it up. I understand why you won't let me die, but haven't I done enough damage? For so many years all I've done is maim and murder, spreading chaos and madness wherever I went. I never wanted this, I never wanted to hurt anyone. I wasn't always like this you know. I guess I couldn't have ever been really right in the head, since I turned out the way I did. I hurt so many people, especially Harley. I love her so much, but all I ever do is hurt her. Why won't she leave me, Batman? Why won't she save herself from me? She's carrying my child, a child that will be just like me and should never have existed! I regret everything I've done, but I regret the pain I caused her the most. Isn't there anything you can do to keep her away from me?_" he shouted in anguish as tears ran down his face.

"_Harley is pregnant?_" Batman asked in disbelief. He didn't have time at the moment to worry about the Joker's unborn child, but that didn't stop him from feeling shocked and concerned about what this meant, for the child and for Gotham. "_I've tried to keep her away from you, but in the end it's her choice._"

"_Why I was blessed with such a pure and beautiful angel I'll never understand,_" sobbed Joker as he shook his head sadly. He looked back at him and said, "_Please Batman, I know it's more than I deserve, but I need you to kill me. I'm afraid that this sanity will only last a short time, and I don't want to be like that anymore. For so long I'd forgotten what it was like to truly feel something, and I'm being swarmed by memories of who I used to be, and it's unendurable. If you won't do it for yourself or for me, do it for all the people I've hurt, and all the people I will hurt if I'm allowed to live and become insane again_. _Do it for your boy Jason, if for no other reason. He'd still be alive and well if not for me_."

"_Death is not the only option. There is a chance you could overcome your insanity, this is the chance you've needed for so long. I believe that everyone can be redeemed, even the lowest of creatures like yourself._" Batman had to work to keep his composure at the mention of Jason. But in his current state, it was easier to resist the urge to kill him, because he could see that underneath the all the impenetrable layers of psychosis, the Joker was still a man, a man trapped within himself and in desperate need of help. If only he could fight off the Joker, but he feared that he wasn't strong enough.

At that, the Joker cracked a small, sad smile. "_You really are the best friend I've ever had, aren't you? And I'm all you have left to hold on to. Fighting me every other day has helped you to keep your sanity, while constantly endangering it at the same time. We're complete opposites, and yet we get along so well. Admit it, you'd be irrevocably damaged if I died, and the same would be true of me, were I still insane. On some level we need each other, and yet we hate each other so much. We really are screwed up, aren't we Bats? We both need help. We represent everything wrong in the world, neither of us should exist, yet here we are._"

"_No Joker, I don't need you. I can survive without you, but without me, you're nothing, because I'm the only thing that's ever given you true purpose in life. You've given me purpose, but there are many other things in my life that have given me the will to survive, as well. If you could find something else to keep you going, you could recover, maybe even live a normal life_."

The Joker's face fell and said, "_If I live with this sanity, I'll spend the rest of my life in the asylum. Not to keep the public safe, but to try to make up for what I've done. I know that no punishment could even remotely be enough for what I've done, but it's the least I can do to try to redeem myself. Oh Bats, I can't live my life like that, knowing that nothing I do can ever be good enough to atone for my sins, why can't you just let me die? I'm so scared, I haven't felt fear in years, but now I'm feeling it full force, because I'm terrified that I'll lose myself again and become something worse than I was before. Then again, maybe this is my punishment, to be trapped within myself, the Joker's greatest victim. Is this why you always refused to kill me, because you knew that death alone was far too lenient?_"

"_No, although I do feel it serves as a bit of poetic justice. Forgive me if I sound cold-hearted, but you understand why I can't exactly sympathize with you,_" said Batman, even though he did feel pity for the broken shell of a man before him.

"_Yes, I understand,_" said Joker sadly as a single tear ran down his face. "_Do you really think there's hope for me? I can't imagine such a thing for someone like me_."

"_I do, because I don't want to face the alternative_. _As long as people believe in hope, anything is possible_."

"_Batman?_" asked Joker timidly.

"_What is it?_" replied Batman.

"_Would you mind if I told you my real name? I couldn't remember it until now, and I want someone else to know it. I want to be a man again, and not a beast_. _I know it's futile, but maybe if you knew you could help me remember, if I change back_."

"_What is your name?_" asked Batman, solemnly and a bit curiously.

"_My name is…_" the Joker started, but as he did, he seemed to forget what he had been about to say and stared off into space for a moment, his eyes glazed over as if in a dream. When he turned back to look at Batman, his eyes were once again filled with the mania and madness he had grown accustomed to seeing there. "_You're a real pal, Bats, a real sucker. I can't wait to see the look on your face when you see what I do next, you'll regret not ending me when you had the chance. Thanks for not offing me though, there's still too much fun to be had and being worm food just isn't my idea of a good time. Where's Harley? That worthless excuse for a sidekick couldn't do one thing for me, she had to get herself tied up and the cure stolen from her. I'll have to teach her a thing or two. My name is the Joker, and I'm back and kicking, baby!_"

Batman had returned him to Arkham, and looking back now, seeing all those dead bodies before him, he wondered if he had made the wrong choice in not granting the Joker's desperate please for death.

For a moment he could only stare at the dead bodies of those kids hanging before him. None of them had been innocent, but none of them deserved this fate, to be murdered on TV for the Joker's amusement. He wondered if anyone out there mourned them, he wondered if they could possibly have lived normal lives, had they not signed their souls over to the Clown Prince.

Batman forced himself to forget the other players and focus on the only two that mattered at the moment: Robin and the Marionette. Just as he was about to enter the city, he heard a voice from behind him.

"So, this is what you've been doing all this time. You had me worried there for a while, it may be wrong, but I'd rather you risk your life fighting the Joker than having an affair with another woman any day."

Batman turned and saw Catwoman behind him, a wry smile on her face.

"You shouldn't be here," he told her, though secretly her presence had a slight calming effect on him. "Helena needs you."

"Don't worry, I got a sitter. Her name's Stephanie Brown and she seemed trustworthy enough. Besides, she needs _both_ her parents. You haven't spoken to either of us since this whole thing started, she misses you terribly. I've missed you a bit, too."

"I'm sorry, but I can't rest until this is over and Robin is safe from that madman."

Catwoman put a hand on Batman's shoulder and said, "I know, if it were you or Helena in Robin's place I would be doing the same thing. We will find him."

She didn't say "We'll save him," or "Everything will be fine." No, she didn't try to sugarcoat this for him like most others would have, and he was grateful to her for that. She was his rock, his soulmate. She had reformed about ten years ago and he had finally revealed his true face to her, and not long after that they were married. Helena was a product of that union, and although Batman wished they could have been married decades sooner, he treasured every moment he had with her, the good and the bad.

She took his hand for a brief moment and kissed his cheek, the only affection she was allowed to show while they were in costume. "Let's go, your son needs you."

They didn't waste any more time in entering the city, hell-bent on finding and saving Robin, and catching the Joker. They quickly found the Joker's manor, and once inside began beating answers out of the lingering henchmen and hench-women. None of them knew where Joker had gone, and Batman could tell they were telling the truth, which infuriated him even more. They kept searching the house, determined to find the clown. He wasn't sure what he would do with the madman when he found him, but one way or another he would make certain the Joker never hurt anyone else ever again.

**~Rose's POV~**

It didn't take very long to get out of the tunnel, and once we were outside I realized we were in a graveyard. The entrance to the tunnel was a headstone, and I couldn't tell if it was real or not. It was late in the day, and the sun would be going down soon, but the graveyard was surrounded by trees that cast the land in shadow. There was also a strange mist, which added to the eerie sense of gloom. The Joker walked through the rows of headstones as I followed close behind him, wondering how many of these graves had been filled by the man who was claiming to be my father.

"Shouldn't we be hiding?" I asked.

"No need, no one will be looking for us here," said Joker as he sat down next to a tiny little stone in the ground marked _Joseph Kerr Jr.- Stillborn_. He patted the ground next to him and I sat beside him as he began to speak.

"I have a lot of explaining to do, don't I?" he said with a grin.

"That's the understatement of infinity," I grumbled.

"Even though I feel no obligation whatsoever to tell you what the hell has been going on, I'll do it anyway." He looked away from me into space, as though he were actually reliving it in his mind's eye. "As you already know, unless you've been living under a rock your whole life, nearly twenty years ago, I along with every other criminal in Gotham had been put in Arkham city. I was dying due to a toxin infecting my blood, and with every day that passed my chances of getting the cure to my disease in time were dwindling more and more. What a cruel twist of fate that I, the Clown Prince of Crime, should die of some disease. It was hilarious really, but I refused to go down without a fight.

"I enlisted the help of Mr. Freeze for a cure, but just in case I needed a plan b, I enlisted Harley's "womanly skills". Harley had always wanted kids and had even had the audacity to ask me if we could have one a time or two, but I made sure she knew to never ask that again. So you can imagine her surprise when I started talking about producing an heir with her. I briefly considered adoption, or finding an apprentice, but I didn't have time and I wanted my heir to have my brains and sense of humor. It didn't take Harley very long to get pregnant, and I actually had to tell her she was pregnant, because she was too dim-witted to notice the signs, and too preoccupied with taking care of little old me to care about her own needs, I suppose. But I still worked to find a cure, and when I lost contact with Mr. Freeze, I secretly enlisted the help of Batman.

"To get Batsy to help, I poisoned him and Gotham with my blood, and it worked rather well. But just when things were finally looking up, they began to go south again. The cure had been created but had been stolen, but then I was offered a chance at immortality in the Lazarus pit. After I killed Ra's brat and Batman beat the crap out of Clayface, I had been just about to take a dive in the pit when Batman destroyed it! I was left with only one hope, that Batman would be stupid enough to give me the cure. He took half for himself, and even though I knew he would save me, there was just the tiniest hint of doubt that he wouldn't, but then he did. Sure, he lectured me for a while afterward and brought me back to Arkham, but he had actually saved me. That too was hysterical, but annoying as well.

"Harley and I were both brought back to Arkham, but now that I was all fine and dandy, I had a dilemma: the kid. I no longer needed a replacement, so I was left with two options: end the pregnancy or let the kid live. I said to myself, what the hell, and decided to let the kid live. Turned out to be a good decision really, as most of the other rogues didn't have the foresight to plan ahead. Pengy died of a heart attack a few years back, and here I was expecting the bird flu, and Black Mask was betrayed by one of his younger henchmen and killed about a month ago. We're not the strapping young men and women we used to be, the world is changing and soon, we won't have a place here anymore. We'll be replaced, even me and Batman, so we have to take measures to make certain there is no way the world can forget us, no matter how hard it tries. A few have begun work to keep their name alive, but most of them will die along with their legacies. But not me. I have you to keep my legacy alive, I'll be the only one to truly leave an indelible imprint on the world.

"Harley's pregnancy went very well. We refused to get an ultrasound, because we wanted the kid to be a surprise. She really lost it with her hormones; she'd go from trying to kill me to crying and eating weird food combinations and then back to trying to kill me, but eventually she calmed down somewhat. Late in the pregnancy someone told her that babies respond to the sound of their parent's voices, so she made me talk to her stomach. At first I thought it was ridiculous, but then we found out that every time I spoke the baby would react by kicking her surprisingly hard. Harley couldn't get enough of that, and I thought it was pretty funny, so that's how we entertained ourselves for a while.

"Later I was put in solitary for performing brain surgery on my doctor. He kept wanting to talk about the baby, he was afraid I would kill it or something, so that was all he talked about. It got really irritating after a while, so I put a stop to it by destroying his Ventromedial Hypothalamus, the part of the brain that signals the body to stop eating when it's full. He was already on the heavy side and was desperate to lose weight because his wife wanted a better-looking guy and was threatening to leave him. After I did that, he was constantly starving, no amount of food could satisfy him, they actually had to tie him down so that he wouldn't hurt himself by eating too much, and he would cry and beg for more food and would eat literally anything he could get his hands on, edible or not. I got a good laugh out of that one. Not my usual motif, but hey, we all got to cut loose and shake up the normal routine every now and again to keep things fresh, wouldn't want to become predictable, now would we?" he said as he chuckled to himself.

"I didn't get out until the night Harley went into labor," he continued as I listened, every word boggling my mind further. It was a wonder I hadn't fainted or something by that point, most people would have once they caught sight of the white skin and green hair. "They had brought in a doctor from the nearest hospital, but Harley was two months premature and fading fast, and so they granted her request and let me see her. Once I was in there, it was clear that Harley was dying and that she desperately needed a C-section, but the doctor was just standing there, doing nothing. She said that the baby was a monster like me, and that she refused to unleash another demon on the world. She was just going to let Harley and the baby die, and that was something I would not allow. If anyone's going to kill Harley or my kid, it's going to be me. I took a scalpel and she tried to stop me, but I made her back off while I cut into Harley's stomach. I found the baby, but while I was pulling him out, I felt something that felt like a foot. I set him down and looked and, sure enough, there was another one! I felt around inside her to make sure there weren't any more, then I made the doctor fix Harley while I worked on you two. Neither of you were breathing, and there just happened to be a pitcher of ice water in the room, so I dumped it on you both to wake you up. Now I know what you're thinking, and hey, it got you breathing, didn't it? You started screaming bloody murder, but Junior wouldn't respond. I worked on him a few minutes, can you imagine it, me trying to save a life instead of destroy it? Oh the irony of it all, the things you do for your kids. But unfortunately he couldn't be saved, and I had to give up.

"There was also an orderly in the room who was supposed to have been helping with the birth but had been on the doctor's side, and I had him clean the blood that hadn't come off with the ice-water off of you while I made sure the doc was fixing Harley and not murdering her while I had my back turned. While I was making small talk with the doc, the orderly screamed and dropped you, but lucky for you I have great reflexes and I was able to catch you just before you hit the floor and busted your head open like a gourd. It was then that I saw why he had screamed, you looked just like me. Chalk-white skin and a head full of green curls, you were the most colorful baby I'd ever seen. I hadn't expected you to turn out like that, it shouldn't have been possible, but there you were, a little baby clown. Out of curiosity, I cleaned up Junior a bit and saw that he was perfectly normal-looking, like Harley. I began to laugh so hard I almost dropped you myself. Two babies, one normal and the other a freak. The freak lives, the normal one dies. He might've been normal and sane, he might have even been able to lead a good and productive life, but the other was disfigured and would likely be insane, but even if she was sane she would never have a chance at a normal life, regardless. Oh, what a sick sense of humor the universe has, that it would allow the demon to live and the angel to die. Your entire life is a joke, Snow. Life itself is a joke, but you took it to a whole new level, and in that moment I realized that I truly wanted to be a father. I realized that I really liked the kid in my arms, and that she was no longer just a pawn in my favorite game. I also got an idea, one of my most brilliant ideas ever, which is saying a lot. Once the doc had finished sewing Harley back together and she was stabilized, I forced her take the girl home with her and take care of her and to tell no one of her existence. I told her I would kill her and everyone she held dear if she hurt you or spilled the beans, and she complied. She left the hospital without speaking to any of the Arkham doctors like she was supposed to and successfully snuck the baby out without even Batso finding out. I killed the orderly and presented to the doctors the dead baby, and they were satisfied, even Batsy and Gordon bought it, though Bats still suspected I had something up my sleeve, of course.

"Naturally, Harley was devastated. I didn't tell her about you, and so she believed her only baby was dead. She was distraught by the loss of her son, and the fact that she believed she had let me down only made it worse for her. They let her see the baby, and she took it from them and wouldn't let go of it for several hours, singing to it over and over and screaming like a banshee any time anyone came near them. It would have been funny if it hadn't been so annoying. They waited until she passed out from exhaustion and then took it from her. Out of sheer pity, they let her name him before they buried him, because we weren't allowed to go to the funeral. They recorded the ceremony and let us watch it later, and I have to say, it was the worst funeral ever. The priest, some guy named Lawrence, couldn't even be bothered to pretend to sound sad, and I never was able to repay him for that. After he nearly killed you in that exorcism, I would have killed him but the incompetent cop driving lost control of the car and got them both killed, and when I went to kill the older priest for his part, he had a heart attack the moment he saw me and I didn't get to have any fun. Life can be so unfair at times. But besides him, the only other people there were the people from the funeral home, although Batsy dropped by too, he's such a sweetheart. Junior deserved better, but what are you gonna do? Anyway, they wouldn't let her name him Joker Jr. so she settled for Joseph Kerr instead."

"Joseph Kerr, clever. And the doctors didn't pick up on it?" I interjected. I was pretty engrossed in his story, but I had to say something about that.

"As long as his name wasn't actually Joker they didn't care what she named him. May I finish my story now?" he asked as he gave me a pointed look. "It took her about two weeks to heal enough to leave her bed, her fast healing came from the serum Pammy gave her. Once she was no longer bedridden, I busted out with her and took you back. When Harley realized what I had done, for about two minutes she was furious and she even tried to strangle me, but she was too thrilled at the fact that she had a living baby to stay mad at me any longer than that. We went back to one of our old hideouts, a toy factory, where I began the first steps of my plan. We kept you for about three months, and in that time I wouldn't let Harley name you, so as a nickname we called you Snow White. In those three months I was working on a formula that would hide your true colors with a more natural skin tone and hair shade. It took a lot of trial and error, but eventually I got it right and made you look like a normal, non-clown baby."

"Wait a minute," I said as realization flooded through me. "J. Reko… You were my doctor?"

"Yes indeedey-do, and what I fine doctor I was," he said, grinning widely. "Anyway, I made you look normal and even gave you some of Harley's features to make her happy. Then I made her give you up. For my plan to work, you would have to grow up away from us in the orphanage. Harley wouldn't hear of it, and she even threatened to run away with you, but eventually I made her see reason, and she let me take you away. It was on the trip to the orphanage that I finally named you. I hadn't known what to call you at first, but then it suddenly came to me: Rosemary. It was very simple and not very unique like I had planned, but it just fit somehow. I dropped you off and explained to the nuns what I expected out of them in regards to your welfare, and the next day I went to pay a visit to the doc. She had a husband and newborn daughter of her own and I told her that I would kill her child and her husband if she didn't do exactly as I said. You see, I needed someone to watch over you, to keep you somewhat safe and make sure you took your pills, and also to make sure you were never adopted. I forced the nuns to accept her into the fold despite the fact that she was married and had a brat. I kept an eye on you too, but it was mainly her job to keep you safe. Her name was Erin, by the way."

"Sister Erin… you mean the woman who raised me killed my brother and tried to kill me and my mother?" I asked, astonished. He might as well have hired Annie Wilkes as my caretaker.

"A fitting punishment, I think. I had to keep an eye on her to make sure she wasn't misbehaving or breaking the rules of our deal, but overall she did her part well enough. She went insane somewhere along the line, but out of love for the child she couldn't have she did well in caring for you, until you ended up at Arkham of course, and the rest is history."

His words finally sunk in and I finally overcame my feelings of shock. "But then why would you have these games? I could have been killed, would you have really let me die?"

"I saved your butt once in the game, though I probably wouldn't have done it again," he replied simply.

"But why would you do that to me?" I demanded, feeling a powerful urge to strangle the man in before me, father or no. "I could have been killed dozens of times, did that not occur to you, or did you just not care? If I had died all this would have been for nothing, unless you didn't care who won?"

"Oh Snow, of course I wanted you to win, and I always knew you would," he said with a proud smile as he put his hands behind his head. "You chose to play the game, it's not like I was holding a gun to your head. You knew you could die, and the fact that we're related doesn't change the fact that you knew what you were getting into. There was always the chance that you might die, but I had to make sure you were ready to face the challenges of living a criminally hedonistic lifestyle. I had to be sure you would be a worthy opponent to the Batman, and you went above and beyond my expectations."

"What if I hadn't won? What if I'd died, what would you have done then?" I asked.

"Given you the funeral of a lifetime, by throwing your coffin off the side of a building onto some unsuspecting people, or maybe I would have just blown it up in the center of the city, really, the possibilities are endless," he giggled.

"But what about your apprentice? Would you have ended the game, or would you have chosen someone else?"

"The show must always go on, Sweets, but after a winner had been chosen, I would have tied him or her to the front of the Batmobile and sent it off a bridge. Some of those kids had potential and were almost likeable, but none of them were worthy to call themselves my heir, and I can't begin to tell you wonderful it feels to not have to baby-sit those insipid little monkeys anymore. They were there to force you to push yourself harder, and to make things more interesting for the show. In the end, they served their purpose well. Jess-Belle especially, she really screwed with Harley's head, without even realizing it. Brought me a lot of laughs at her expense."

"What do you mean, she was screwing with her head without realizing it?" I asked. It seemed that Jess-Belle had always been messing with people, but she had always been very aware of it.

"Oh, you'll see what I mean soon enough. But believe me when I tell you, this game was for your own good. You'll thank me some day, just wait and see," he said as he patted my head.

"Did the other rogues have to play stupid games to prepare for their lives of crime?" I asked through gritted teeth.

"No, but I had to take precautions, make sure my little girl was up to the task ahead of her. By the way, you really made my day when you killed Shadow, every father's dream is to watch their daughter murder her boyfriend, regardless of whichever side of the law they're on. I wanted to kill him myself the moment he started making moves on you, but like a good father, I let you handle your own problems, and you handled that boy like a mature, professional adult psychopath. You make Daddy so proud."

"But why did you have to give me away for your sick plan to work? Do you have any idea what I went through in the orphanage? It sucked, to put it kindly. Why would you do that to me?"

"First of all, can you imagine Harley and me raising a child? Sure we could do it, but with our hectic lifestyles and being thrown in Arkham every now and again, we couldn't have made trouble for Batso and kept you secret at the same time, and I'm sorry my turtledove, but Batman needs me. Second, would you really have wanted us to? If we had raised you, you would have grown up believing that your only purpose in life would be to follow in my footsteps and continuing on my legacy."

"Is that not my only purpose?" I asked.

"Well of course it is, but when you became a criminal I wanted you to do it for the right reasons. If you did it because you felt you had no choice, you would have resented me and my way of living, you wouldn't have wanted to keep my legacy alive, but you would have anyway. You wouldn't have had any fun in doing it, and so you wouldn't have been able to do your job correctly, you would have been just like any other criminal because you wouldn't have loved the job. But this way, you got a good look at what life's really like without me having to point it out to you, and you chose to become a criminal because you wanted to, not because you thought you were being forced. I made the pills for you to hide your true colors, so that you could have some semblance of a normal life, so that you could see the world through your own eyes and not be biased due to your unique appearance. I gave you the gift of free will, you should be very grateful. The third reason is because it's too easy to mold the mind of a child, because they're so impressionable. Anyone can indoctrinate a child, I wanted to see if I could remake you like me after you had developed your own ways of thinking. I did it to Harley, but she could hardly be considered a challenge. You on the other hand, I knew you'd be special from the get-go, and so I wanted you to become the best rogue possible."

"But what if I hadn't chosen this? Would you have left me alone?"

"Are you kidding me? Of course not, I would have stopped giving you the pills and found another way to make you join me. But that wasn't necessary, because you chose it willingly without any meddling on my part. I've been working on this plan for eighteen years to the day, happy birthday by the way."

"Birthday?" I said, confused. Then I realized that it was my birthday, that I was now officially eighteen years old.

"Anyway, I knew you'd be put in the asylum at some point, so I decided to wait until then to start the game."

"How did you know I would be put in Arkham? You just assumed I would be crazy?"

"Remember whose DNA you were spawned from," he said as he stood and cast me a wink. "You were born in a mental asylum, naturally you'd return one day."

My fury became uncontrollable at that point, and I unleashed my anger on him in that moment by socking him in the eye, catching him off guard and knocking him to the ground. He laughed and got back to his feet as he said, "I guess I do kind of deserve that." It really was a shame that taking out my anger on him would never reap the desired effect.

"I can't handle all this, it's too much," I said as I grasped the sides of my head. The anger was mostly gone, but now it felt as if my body was in shock. This was too much for anyone to bear, no amount of therapy would ever make this okay.

"I'll give you a few minutes to take things in, but then we need to go, okay kiddo?" said Joker as he ruffled my hair a bit, then walked off out of sight, humming cheerfully as he did.

I looked back down at the grave I was sitting by, unable to believe that it belonged to my dead twin, the brother I never knew I had. Actually, I was having a hard time taking in anything the Joker had said. I had wanted parents so desperately as a child, only to get my wish years later in the form of the loony clown couple. But the more I thought about it, the more it made sense. The reason that couple had tried to kill me was because my pills had worn off, they had seen the real me, and had been scared to death by my appearance, because I was the spitting image of my father, the Joker. The only part of me that wasn't a mirror image of himself were my eyes, and they weren't even mine, but Harley's. My mother's eyes. They had tried to kill me because of it, but it must have been the Joker who had saved me. He must have blackmailed the doctors into keeping quiet about his identity, that or he'd been in disguise. Either way, the thought of the Joker going out of his way to keep a child alive was so wrong. It was also why the nuns had kept me away from the other kids and wouldn't let me be adopted, and why the priest had tried to kill me, because they knew what I was when I didn't know it myself. I began to realize that the Joker was right, that my life really was one big joke. My previous life had been a complete lie; I had thought I was made into a monster, but it looked like I had been born one. I shouldn't have ever existed, if there was any order or justice in the universe at all neither I nor my father would be allowed to live, yet here we are. I had wanted to make a name for myself, to show the world how important and special I was, and now I wanted that more than ever. In a way, I was glad Joker had done all this, because he had given me a choice and I chose correctly. I still wished he hadn't done it, but it had led to probably the most desirable outcome. Barely aware it was happening, the walls I kept up around my mind to focus came crashing down, never to be put up again. All those thoughts that were constantly vying for my attention attacked, and for a moment I let them bombard me. I felt myself snapping, I felt myself falling apart, the last bits of sanity I had left being burned to nothing but ash.

I rose up and looked down at my baby brother's grave and said, "I wonder, given the chance, would you trade your life for mine? Would you choose a life of madness and rictus grins over a six foot hole in the ground? Or are you glad you were chosen by death, and spared my fate? I guess you could say I drew the short straw, but at least I get to have a few laughs life before I follow you over to the other side."

I turned away from my dead twin's grave and began to laugh. I laughed at myself, at my wretched existence and how funny it was, and I laughed at the world, because nearly everyone in it lacked the clarity I now possessed. I left Junior's grave, still giggling madly to myself, and looked for the Joker. I stopped laughing by the time I found him, but I could still feel a smile on my face, the happiest smile I had worn in a long time.

"I'm ready."

His smile matched my own as he said, "Then let us be off, daughter dearest."


	23. Chapter 23

I found us a car with a couple inside making out. I killed them and dragged out their bodies, and in exchange Joker showed me how to hotwire a car, even though we had the key. He had me drive, and told me where to go. His directions took us to an abandoned toy factory, and I wondered if it was the same one Joker had talked about. Once we were inside, the lights inside were switched off, but not before I got a quick glimpse of a room decorated for a party. In the center of the room was a humongous multi-colored cake.

"Honey, I'm home!" announced Joker. "And I have a guest, the winner of the game and my new apprentice! Come say hi!"

Suddenly, I felt a pair of hands wrap around my throat and I was shoved to the floor on my face. I felt a knee painfully digging into my back as a voice hissed, "You horrible, wretched, monster!" The voice, which I recognized as Harley's shouted, "You murdered my daughter, my baby girl! I don't care if you won the game or if you are Mistah J's apprentice, I'm gonna send you back to hell for what you've done!"

She got off my back but didn't release her grip on me, and I was able to fight back, but she had me in a bad position and I was having a difficult time of fighting her off. She continued to yell and screech at me about killing her daughter, and I wondered what she could possibly be talking about. Wasn't I her daughter? Needless to say, I was confused and annoyed by her behavior. Hadn't I already been put through enough for one day?

Finally, the Joker turned the lights back on. Harley had me in a headlock, while I had pulled off her jester cowl and was in the process of ripping her hair out and clawing at her face. But when the lights came back on and she saw me, she finally stopped her attack.

"Ma-Mari?" she said, sounding dazed as she released me and took several steps back. "W-Why do ya look like that? Why do ya look like Mistah J? This doesn't make any sense, I mean, you're not the right one. What's goin' on here, Mistah J? Didja give her a chemical bath after she won as a reward?"

"Nope, no chemicals necessary, the perma-clown is all natural," said Joker with a mischievous grin. "Harley, meet our daughter, Rosemary Quinn."

"You mean Mari is our… our daughter?" she asked incredulously. She leaned against the wall, looking like she might faint. "Oh God, can it be true? But I thought, I thought Jess-Belle was our daughter."

"Good guess, but slightly off," chuckled Joker.

"Rose, you're the one, and not Jess-Belle?" she asked as she stared at me as if seeing me for the first time. Her fury and confusion suddenly vanished and her face lit up like a child on Christmas morning. "Oh my goodness I can't believe it, you're the one!" she said as she ran over and squeezed me so tightly it felt like she was breaking my ribs. "I wanted it to be you so badly, but I thought it was Jess-Belle. I can't believe I guessed wrong! Come with me, we gotta talk," she said as she grabbed me by the hand and eagerly dragged me to another room.

She led me to a room which I guessed was her and Joker's bedroom. She sat down on the bed and had me sit down with her. She moved behind me and undid my pigtails and began to play with my hair, braiding it and unbraiding it. I let her do it because I didn't care enough at the moment to tell her to stop, and because it was sort of relaxing.

"You don't know how long I've waited for this, Rose. Ever since we gave you away, I've longed for this moment, when we could finally be a family again."

"You thought Jess-Belle was your daughter?" I asked incredulously. "Didn't Joker tell you who I was?"

"Mistah J said I couldn't know who ya were, because it was all part of the game. I feel really stupid now, but at the time I put the clues I had together and guessed Jess-Belle. The main reason I thought it was her is because on your tenth birthday Mistah J said he would let me see you, but I couldn't talk to you or touch you. At the time they were makin' a documentary about him, and at first he liked the idea, but they got some talentless wannabe actor to play him, so he had to go teach 'em a thing or two. He was gonna go to the set, kill the actor, and take his place and then blow up the whole thing. But while he did that, he had me kill and replace a clown that had been hired to entertain Jess-Belle's birthday party, which was on the same day as yours. It was a big deal, loads of celebrities were there. I was Yelrah, the Clown Queen, that's my name spelled backwards in case ya didn't know. I did magic tricks and stuff for the rugrats. All the kids loved me, all except Jess-Belle." She said the dead girl's name like it was a curse.

"After I was done I shoved a stick of dynamite in her cake, but that idiot Bruce Wayne accidentally knocked the cake into the pool before it could explode. If I didn't know better, I'd think he knew about the bomb, the klutz. It freaked out all the kids, all except Jess-Belle. It was the only thing that got a smile out of her, and that, along with her having the same birthday as my daughter and the help talking about how evil she was when she and her parents were out of earshot, made me think it was her. But now that I know it wasn't her, that means Mistah J didn't keep his promise."

Her face fell for a moment, but almost instantly it lit up again. "Wait a minute, you're from the orphanage, right? Before he dropped me off at the party Mistah J drove us to the Gotham History Museum to steal somethin', I don't even remember what it was 'cause he threw it away right afta' we stole it. But while he was stealin' it there were a group of orphans there too and Mistah J had me threaten one of 'em so the guards wouldn't shoot at us. He told me to grab the one with blonde pigtails and blue eyes… It was you, wasn't it?" she said with a gasp. "It was you, I was holdin' a gun on my own daughter! Now it all makes sense! I thought it was really weird, breakin' into the museum in the middle of the day for somethin' he didn't even want, but it was really a big joke on me! He let me see you, and here I thought you were just some dumb orphan, which means he did keep his promise! My Puddin' tricked me into thinking Jess-Belle was our daughter when it was you all along. Not that it was all that hard, I mean, she has blonde hair and blue eyes like you, you two could have been sisters. She was adopted into that rich family, meaning she was once an orphan, and her name is a play on Jezebel, the evil wife of King Ahab in the Bible. Not to mention the first part of her name, Jess, is the beginning of the word Jester, and it seemed like somethin' Mistah J would do."

"You've thought a lot about this, haven't you?" Even though it was typical Harley behavior to forgive the Joker no matter what and believe that he could do no wrong, this was kind of pushing it. He was lucky she worshipped him like she did, otherwise his little "prank" would have landed him in a world of hurt.

"Of course! The only way I could keep from losing my mind during this whole thing was to try to figure out which of you was my daughter! I can't even begin to tell you how relieved and ecstatic I am that you're the one, I really didn't want to have Jess-Belle, it was very disappointing. She's never even killed anyone, she just makes them do it themselves, where's the fun in that? Not to mention, she was a spoiled brat, and incredibly annoying, too. She made Verruca Salt look like a selfless angel. But you, you were perfect, and I couldn't believe that I had such a horrible, spoiled brat for a daughter when the perfect girl was right in front of me! You're perfect for Mistah J's apprentice, but I knew Jess-Belle had to win. The only reason I wanted her to win was because I thought she was my daughter, but at the same time I didn't want her to win, and it was terribly conflicting and very stressful. But everything worked out, just like you and Mistah J promised it would!"

"But we have the same last name, shouldn't that have tipped you off?"

"Now Rosie, Quinn isn't exactly a unique name, I just figured it was a weird coinkydink. I mean come on, did you think we were related?"

"Touché." I admitted. "But why did you let him give me away?" I asked, and I felt Harley's hands freeze in my hair. "If you love me so much, why would you let him do that to me? I know why he did it and understand it, but why didn't you fight for me?"

She didn't answer for a long time, and when she did, her voice was so quiet I almost couldn't hear it. "I didn't want to. I wanted to keep ya forever and ever, but Mistah J wouldn't let me. He said it would be better to give you away, so that you could see the world through your own eyes and make the decision for yourself to go into the family business. After a lot of thinking I realized he was right. Even though you would have been a thousand times happier growing up with us, you would have thought you didn't have any choice bein' like us, plus I didn't want you to get hurt. I realized that I had to put your needs above my own, like a good mother should. It was the hardest decision I ever made."

Her voice was choked with tears as she said, "Do you know how much I worried about you? Every night I dreamt of you, of what you would grow up to be, and I was so afraid something would go wrong in Mistah J's plans. What if the people raisin' you didn't treat you right? Or what if you got in with the wrong crowd, and became the next Batgirl! That one was kind of out there, but it was still a possibility. And what if you had died in the game? Puddin' kept sayin' over and over that you weren't gonna die, and I trust him completely, but I was still really scared for you. I gave you away to try to do right by you, so that you could be happy."

Her voice hitched as she said, "Oh who am I kiddin', I'm a terrible mother! I didn't even recognize you until now, you could have died at any time and I wouldn't have known, I wasn't there for you! I'm supposed to be your rock, I'm supposed to be there for you when you need me, but I can't seem to be for some reason. I thought I was doing the right thing, but I failed you. I shouldn't have let Mistah J give you away, and I shouldn't have let him force you to play that game. Even if it meant runnin' away with you, I should have done whatever was necessary to kept you safe. It's just that I love you and your father so much, I almost lost him for good in Arkham City, I couldn't bear to lose either of you. I'm the worst mother ever, I'm so sorry Rosie, I'm so sorry." Harley stopped playing with my hair and sat back against the headboard, sobbing uncontrollably into her red and black-gloved hands.

I moved across the bed and put my arms around Harley's shoulders, because it seemed the thing to do. The only thing that mattered to her was Joker's approval, but right now she needed mine. While I was still trying to accept what they had done to me, I knew that she had tried her best to give me a good life, even if it was misguided. Harley was one of those people who could ace every subject, yet could get lost on the way to the bathroom in her own home. I didn't doubt that she would have been a good mother to me, but there were certain things she had difficulties with, and while loving me would never have been a problem, raising me and keeping me safe would have been another story. Then again, despite her delusional thinking, she'd realized that she and the Joker couldn't raise me without my life being in constant danger. The Joker had forced her to give me up, but in the end she had agreed to it, because she knew on some level that their chosen lifestyle wasn't conducive to taking care of a baby, not that I would have minded, anything would have been better than Erin and the orphanage. All things considered, she'd made a choice that most parents could never do, she'd given me away, not just because she'd been forced, but also because she wanted the best for me and that was the only way she knew how to do it, by sacrificing her own wants for my own. All she wanted was to have both the man she loved and her child together as one big happy family. She loved me more than a lot of other parent's loved their children, and I knew she would do anything to keep me safe and to make me happy, so I couldn't hold her actions against her.

"It's okay Mom, you're not a bad mother at all. I understand why you and Joker did what you did, and it did all work out in the end, I guess. I wish I could have grown up here with you, but at least I'm here now, right? I'm not mad at either of you, honest."

She looked up at me, tears streaking her makeup, and said through hiccupping sobs, "You really mean that? You think I'm a good mother?"

I nodded, and she smiled a small, happy smile as she said," I can't believe you just called me Mom, I've been dyin' to hear you call me that since the day I found out you existed, but I didn't think you ever would. Hey, you wanna hear a secret?"

"What kind of secret?" I asked as I put my pigtails back up.

Her smile became naughty as she said, "You have to promise you'll never tell your daddy about this, because if he ever found out that I even know about this he'd kill us both on the spot."

"I won't tell, I promise," I assured her, intrigued to know her secret.

"Before we gave you away, I did all the work in caring for you while Mistah J worked on your skin medicine. One night, you started crying and I had been about to get out of bed to tend to ya, but Mistah J got out first and told me to stay. I couldn't resist, so I followed him out and made sure he didn't notice me. I watched as he went into your room and picked you up out of your little cradle, talkin' about how noisy you were and how much trouble you were. He held you up above his head, and you suddenly threw up all over his face. I was afraid he would throw you at the wall or somethin, but he didn't. He took you in one arm and wiped the puke off his face with the other, and cuddled you until you stopped cryin'. The way he looked at you… it was the most beautiful thing I have ever seen, and I had to make sure I got back to bed before he noticed I had disobeyed him. After that he didn't hold you again until it was time to give you away, but that one moment was precious. It's one of my favorite memories, one I've treasured all these years, 'cause it proves he loves you. Everyone's always tellin' me he doesn't love me, and I was afraid the only reason he was keepin' you was because he needed you to be his heir, but he unwittingly showed me that you mean a bit more to him than that. If only Junior could be here with us, then it'd be truly perfect. If only that witch hadn't killed him." Tears brimmed in her eyes again as she said, "Why'd she have to kill him? Why'd she take away my baby boy? It's not fair. Mistah J wouldn't let me avenge him, because he said he'd taken care of it. I wish I could have gotten my hands on her, hell would be paradise compared to what I'd do to her. No one messes with my babies," she growled through her teeth, her expression alone enough to scare the wits out of the Batman himself.

"Don't worry, the Joker did take care of her, I can't imagine a more fitting punishment," I assured her. I found it rather humorous that Harley believed Erin was evil for having let her son die, yet she had killed so many people, all of whom had been someone's baby at some point. She either was totally oblivious to the irony of it or just didn't care. I knew if I pointed it out to her she'd say, "But this is different!" Or something to that effect. She tended to love too much, and would never hesitate to kill for someone she loved, even if that person posed absolutely no true threat. I had a feeling she didn't kill unless the Joker told her too, or if she believed they were in her way, whether they be pointing a gun at him or slowing her down while running some errand for him. I supposed no one ever told her about the Golden Rule.

"Well, as long as she suffered and realized what she did was wrong, I guess it's okay. Everything worked out, just like you and Mistah J said it would," she said again as she hugged me tightly. She then out of the blue said, "I can't wait to introduce you to your Aunt Ivy! Mistah J said I wasn't to tell her about you but it slipped out and she got real mad at Puddin', but when she meets you she'll just love you. We gotta go shopping together real soon!"

"Are you two done yammering yet?" Joker yelled from the other room. "Or are you too busy gossiping about boys?"

"Comin' Mistah J!" she called back. She ran to the bathroom to check her appearance. She did the quickest touch up on her makeup I had ever seen, managing to make it look as if not a single tear had been shed in under a minute, I think she broke a record. She then skipped back to the other room with me following behind.

She skipped up to the Joker and then, without any warning, kicked him in the neck, knocking him to the floor. He cried out in pain as she yelled down at him, "That's for takin' away my baby, putting her life in danger, and tricking me into thinking that bitch Jess-Belle was our daughter!"

Before he had a chance to get up, as he was rubbing his sore neck, she got down on her knees and kissed him right on the lips. The kiss was short and sweet, but full of passion. She ended the kiss and, still holding his face in her hands, said softly, "And that's for bringing her back to me."

The Joker looked a bit dazed, whether from the blow or from her abrupt mood swing or the kiss or a combination of the three I couldn't tell. I saw a flash of anger in his eyes, but he didn't smack her away like I had expected him to. Instead, a smile broke out over his face as he allowed her to help him get back to his feet. I guessed he was in too good a mood to stay mad at her, that or he was afraid her mood would shift again and he didn't want to face her wrath.

"You said you were coming but you took forever to get back. I know you two have a lot of catching up to do but surely it can wait till later," said Joker as he tasted a bit of the icing from the cake with his finger. "Ew Harley, this cake is awful! Didn't Cookie teach you anything?"

He then grabbed a handful of it and threw it at her, hitting her right in the face. She gasped and retaliated by grabbing a handful and throwing it at him, hitting him right on his bowtie and splattering his face with drops of icing. World War III broke out then, with cake flying everywhere, nowhere was safe. I couldn't resist and began throwing cake at both of them, and in return they both got me back. I managed to get Joker right between the eyes and he grabbed me and shoved me face-first into the cake, saying, "Sweets for the sweet!"

My chest hurt from laughing so much as I attempted to wipe icing off my face, when I saw Robin sitting against the wall with his arms wrapped around his legs. He hadn't moved since we got here, even though he had been hit by a lot of cake. All he did was stare blankly at the wall opposing him, not seeing the wall but something else entirely, and I wondered what that something was.

Once there was nothing left of the cake, save what was on us and the furniture and walls, we all calmed down. I found myself panting from all the fighting, and in desperate need of a shower. Joker ran to get in the shower first, and when Harley suggested they shower together he made her wash off in the sink. Joker took forever in the shower, and by the time I got in the hot water only lasted for about thirty seconds. I wanted to yell at him for it, but I would give him no such pleasure. Smiling to myself despite the freezing cold water raining down on me, I hummed to myself while I rinsed the icing off.

When I got out, I could tell the Joker didn't appreciate my lack of a response to his prank. I shrugged and he gave me a pouty expression.

"You're no fun at all, you know that?"

"I'm sorry, I'll scream good and loud next time you try to freeze me to death," I replied as I wrung out my hair.

He grinned and said, "That's my girl." He turned to Harley, who was towel-drying her hair, and said, "Harley-girl, take Chuckles and clean him up, will you? I guess during all the brain-washing he forgot basic hygiene. Next time I screw with someone's mind I'll have to make sure they don't forget basic functions."

"I'll make him clean as a whistle, Puddin," said Harley as she pulled Robin up and tugged him into the bathroom.

"Come with me, Snow," said Joker as he led me outside on a less than stable-looking balcony. It was nighttime now, and it was one of those rare nights when you could see all the stars. "Just look at those stars. And look at the moon, not only is it full, but there's a bunny in it, too. For the longest time I never noticed, but it's there, for anyone willing to see it."

I looked hard, and was surprised when I saw it. "Huh, there really is a bunny in the moon." How had I never noticed it before?

"Sadly, most people will never see it, because they don't want to see it. I didn't see it until after my re-birth, but everyone's too afraid to take that leap. They'll never have the freedom that we have, just as they'll never see the bunny in the moon."

He sighed and held out a small box to me and said, "Open it."

I took the box and opened it, and I looked to see what he had given me and gasped when I saw what it was: it was a locket. It was made of silver and shaped like a heart, and in the center was a flower design made of amethysts and black diamonds. I had never had anything as beautiful as that locket, and after years of having nothing, I was almost too afraid to try it on. I opened it and found that it was empty, but that I could put two pictures inside.

"Just a little 'Sorry I gave you away and made a hag raise you and made you play my awesome game,' gift," said Joker, still gazing at the bunny. "Harley picked it out, but I made a few minor modifications that I think you'll appreciate. Squeeze the sides to see what I mean."

I did as he said, and I was hit by a small spray of Joker toxin. I wasn't affected, but I could tell that even though the spray was smaller, it was concentrated and as potent as ever. I vaguely wondered how he had managed to rig the necklace to spray his laughing gas.

"Just so you know, it can spray acid, too!" he added gleefully.

I slipped the necklace around my neck and fastened it. I had never worn real jewelry before, and the cold weight of the stone was a nice feeling on my chest.

"Thanks," I said, a bit taken aback that the Joker would give me a gift like this, with Harley's help, of course. That tiny act of kindness was unexpected from him, which made the gift even more meaningful.

"Tomorrow or the next day, Batman will find us," he suddenly said.

"How can you be so sure?" I asked, still admiring the locket.

"Because he's Batman, duh!" he shouted. "That, and I left him a hint to our location."

"Why would you do that? Don't you want to lay low for a while?" I asked as I looked out over the balcony, half-expecting Batman to be there, waiting for us to turn our backs so he could make his dramatic entrance.

"I can't just stir up all this trouble and then run away and hide with my tail between my legs! I've been dying to have a date with Batsy, I couldn't do it during the game because I couldn't have him screwing up your education under my tutelage! But now it's just him and me again. When he finds me, I want you to stay here so you don't ruin everything, got it?"

"But isn't this the very reason why you put me on a crash course in insanity? I can help you take him down, we can finally kill him, together."

"A tempting offer, but no. But I'll tell you what you can do, you and Harley and Chuckles can go around Gotham and cause a bit of chaos here and there, stir up a little trouble to entertain yourselves while I'm gone. This city could certainly use it, why, it's been weeks since I killed any of them! They must feel so neglected, they probably think I've forgotten them, the poor dears."

"Anyone can cause trouble, I want to help you," I insisted.

"You need to establish yourself out there in the world, best get started now. Besides, there's no way you can win this argument, because I never back down in a debate."

"Neither do I."

"You see, this is one of those times when I wish you'd gotten more of Harley's traits than mine. Oh well, at least you didn't inherit her brain."

"By the way, I've been meaning to ask, why haven't you kill Robin yet?"

"Robin who? Oh! You must be referring to dear Chuckles. I haven't killed him because I promised Batsy I wouldn't, and I'm a man of my word. Besides, it was much more fun to peel back the layers of his mind and reduce him to something less than human. I bet he can see the bunny in the moon too, now that I've helped him discover his true self. He'll make a lovely gift for Batman later, a token of my affection."

"You know, I think that if he weren't insane now, he would've been a good hero, eventually. He might've even been Batman's replacement."

"Worthy of fighting you, you mean? Of being your archenemy?" he asked as he raised an eyebrow.

"Maybe, I don't know. I mean, now that he's only fit for the funny farm I guess Nightwing will take Batman's place, but I think I would have preferred fighting him, instead. I guess it doesn't really matter though, someone will step up to the plate to fight me and the other rogues. At least one person will take on that responsibility, because it seems that whenever there's evil, good always rises up to face it, and vice-versa. It's why a utopian society is an impossibility, because even if you form the perfect society there will always be someone who lusts for power, and will do whatever it takes to tear down what's been built up to reach his goals. But in a dystopian society, at least one person will rise up to fight back the darkness, even if it's a hopeless and wasted effort. Fortunately for me, it will mean that I'll always have someone to play with and match wits with."

Joker beamed down at me proudly and said as he wiped away a pretend tear, "You're the best daughter a psychotic clown could ever hope to have! I'm really glad I didn't kill you."

"As insane as this sounds, I'm actually kind of glad you and Harley are my parents. Maybe it's because I don't have the slightest idea as to what it's like to grow up with normal parents, but if I had to come from any two people, I'm glad it was you guys, because at least this way I have a valid excuse for my mentality and actions," I said with a playful grin.

"Now you're getting all mushy on me," said Joker. "Still, it's got to be better than you running away and having to chase you down the streets. I considered that possibility more than once, and half-expected it and even planned for it. Well, we best get back inside before we freeze to death out here."

As we went back inside, Harley appeared with a camera in her hand.

"No Harley," was all Joker said.

"Aw come on Puddin', it's not every day you get to meet your baby for the first time!"

"You met her months ago!" Joker reminded her.

"But I didn't know who she was then, so it doesn't count!" argued Harley. "Come on, the only pictures we have of her are the ones we took when she was a baby, if we don't update our photo album now it'll look like we're bad parents! I'm not taking no for an answer, the sooner you pose the sooner it's over with."

Joker sighed heavily and rolled his eyes, but he was done arguing this with her, knowing it was a lost battle. Harley arranged us and set the camera to take our picture and ran over to join us, and the flash blinded me. But she wasn't done yet, oh no, she'd only just begun. She got a picture of Joker and me, had Joker take a picture of her and me, but mostly she just took pictures of me alone. It was very irritating and tedious, but if I was being honest with myself, it wasn't that bad. Harley's face was beaming as she ran over to their computer and printed out the pictures, fawning over every single one of them.

"Look at how pretty you are!" she said as she held up one of dozens to show me.

"Pretty?" I scoffed as I took in my new clownish appearance. It was even worse in a photograph than it was in the mirror. "Maybe it looks okay on your boyfriend, but I'm another story."

"Oh shut up," she said as she turned to look at me, her expression very serious. "You are the prettiest girl in Gotham, and I'm not just saying that because I'm biased. You are the most amazing, beautiful girl this world has ever known, and don't let anyone ever let anyone ever tell you otherwise, got it?"

"Okay, okay, calm down Mom," I laughed. I took another look at the photo and said, "Hm, I do look pretty good, don't I?" I realized that the look was slowly growing on me. I actually liked it.

"Please, you're dazzling," said Harley as she rifled through the pictures. "Any girl would kill to have your looks." She took out a picture and cut out a circle and handed it to me. "Here, put this in your locket. You do like the locket, don't you? Mistah J said to get purple and black gemstones, and I didn't know why 'till now."

"It's lovely, Mom," I said as I looked at the cut picture she had handed me. It was the family photograph, with all of us beaming like the crazy clown family we were. It was a really great picture, and I stuck it in the locket. There was still space for one more picture, and I already knew who would be filling the spot. "Thanks Mom."

"I will never get tired of hearin' you call me Mom," she said as she hugged me again, and I hugged her back.

Just then, the Joker came back into the room, having at some point through the picture-taking process gotten annoyed with it and stormed out. "Better hit the hay, Snow, you've got a big day of terrorizing the innocent ahead of you tomorrow."

"You're already taking this whole parenting thing too seriously," I said with a grin.

"Oh please, when am I ever serious about anything?" he said with a wink as he pointed towards a room which I took to be mine.

I told them both goodnight and went to my room, which had nothing but a rug, a small table, and an old couch inside. On the table was a framed picture of the Joker and Harley holding a little clown baby, all three of them looking as happy as ever. I was a bit surprised to see that Joker wasn't making bunny ears behind Harley's head and they weren't making faces at the camera like they sometimes did when they were on camera, which must have been very difficult for him, and they actually looked like a normal family. It seemed so wrong, because the baby in the picture, other than the emerald curls and ivory skin, appeared perfectly normal and healthy. Just by looking at the photograph, I could tell that the baby was loved and well cared for, and she was happier than any baby I'd ever seen. It was kind of hard to believe that I had once been that baby.

I laid down to sleep, having already decided that there was no way I was going to miss out on the Joker and Batman's showdown. I might sit out for some of it to shake up the city a bit, to introduce myself to them in person, but I was going to have a front-row seat to the action. After all, it's not every day you get to watch your father face-off with the Batman himself.

xxxx

A little while after I'd fallen asleep I awoke to the sound of a huge crash, and found myself tangled up in my blanket on the floor. For a half second I wondered how I'd ended up down there, but quickly dismissed it and ran out to see what was going on. Batman was standing in the middle of the living room of the hideout, having broken through the window to get inside. The night was still pitch black outside, its darkness obscuring Batman almost completely.

"Ah, Batsy! Care to join us for breakfast?" asked Joker as he entered the room, a cup of coffee in his hand, a newspaper under his arm as though it were morning, with a mischievous grin on his face.

Batman knocked the coffee cup and newspaper out of his hands and grabbed him by the front of his suit and lifted him off the ground. "Where's Robin?" he demanded in a low growl.

"Why does everyone think I have Robin? I have a kid who kind of looks like Robin, why don't I introduce him to you? Chuckles! You have someone here to see you!"

Robin came in through the door, and despite the fact that his expression was blank, his scarred lips made him look extremely happy. I was surprised when he didn't go running into Batman's arms with joy, but then again things had changed a lot for him over the past few months. Who knew what was going through that mad little mind of his.

"My God," said Batman, his expression horrified. He was distracted for only a second, but then slammed the Joker against the wall. "What did you do to him?" he snarled.

"I kept my promise, I didn't kill him," giggled Joker. "Think of this as a thank you present for all the good times we've had together, and for saving my life all those years ago. In fact, he's not just a gift for you, but for everyone in Gotham. You see, eighteen years ago my son died because a so-called doctor tried to be a hero and save everyone from a potential threat. She did a much better job of it than you ever did Bats, even though she did fail to completely eliminate the threat. Now, you know I'm not one to hold a grudge, I don't blame Gotham for Junior's death, but the fact remains that my son died by another person's hand, and that's something I just can't allow. That's why I'm having Chuckles act as a stand-in, he'll provide the jokes and antics that Junior would have. Of course, Snow will be the one putting on the real show, won't you darling?"

I nodded with a smile just as Harley came into the room and saw what was going on. Apparently she had managed to sleep through Batman's dramatic and loud entrance. "What's going on here! Don't ya knock before comin' into someone's home, B-man?"

Batman ignored her and flipped the Joker over onto the table as he giggled with delight. I was quickly growing tired of Batman's presence here, and so I pulled out my knife and made to attack him. I was just about to drive my knife into his arm when Joker yelled at me.

"Don't you dare, young lady! Interfere and you'll be grounded for a month!" he laughed as Batman proceeded to pummel him.

"You expect me to not attack Bat-brain when he's right in front of me? Who do you think I am, anyway?"

The Joker escaped Batman's hold on him and, despite the intense beating, he was still in the game. He picked up a chair and got Batman right in the face, dazing him and giving him time to make his escape.

"If you want to keep the game going you'll have to catch me first! Run, run, run, as fast as you can, you can't catch me, I'm the Joker-man!" Joker called out, laughing as he jumped out the same window Batman had entered in. Batman followed him of course, but before I could follow them I heard a scream from behind me.

"What are you're doing!" Harley cried as she threw herself in front of me just as Robin came up with a piece of broken glass from the window to attack me. Faster than lightning, before either of us could stop him, he sliced open her throat.

"Mom!" I shouted as she collapsed to the floor. Robin was just staring at the bloody glass in his hand, as if wondering how the blood had appeared there. He looked agitated, for reasons beside the obvious ones. I wasn't sure what was going on with him, there really wasn't a way to describe it. I shoved him out of the way and knelt down by Harley's side. I wanted to help her, but I could tell her wound was deeper than mine had been, he had hit an artery and blood was now spurting out of her wound, onto me and everything else. She had sacrificed herself to save me, and while it didn't surprise me, I couldn't help the stinging in my eyes.

"Rosie…" she whispered as she tried to focus on my face, her baby-blue eyes, the same as mine, filling with tears. "I'm so s-sorry. W-We just now became a family again and now this… I don't want to be without you and M-Mistah J. I don't want to die like this."

"Shh…" I said, trying my best to console her as I held her hand. No doubt she wanted to die in the arms of her Puddin', but I would have to do. I wondered what Joker would do when he found out, if anything. "It's okay, everything's going to be just fine. I'll take care of the Joker, and you'll get to be with Junior. I bet he can't wait to see you."

That brought a small, weak smile to her lips. I could tell she was about to lose consciousness. "I love you Rose, so, so much. I wish Mistah J were here with us now, so we could be together one last time. If only…" Her voice trailed off, and her eyes became like glass orbs, completely void of life. The blood stopped on its own then, having nothing to keep it moving. I felt a sharp pang of sadness in my chest that was quickly replaced by anger. I turned on Robin, who was snapping out of his trance and was preparing to attack me. He had ditched the piece of glass and now held in his hand a long knife. His eyes were feral, like those of a rabid wolf. Robin was gone, replaced by the thing he so despised.

"Now that wasn't very nice," I said as I pulled out my own knife. I had forgotten to clean it and so it was still caked in the blood of some of my various victims, but I really didn't care at the moment. "Killing my mother was way out of line, how would you like it if I killed your mom? Then again, she's probably already dead if she lets you hang out with the Bat and risk your neck every night. Joker wanted you to live a bit longer so you could terrorize Gotham, but I'm afraid I'm there's been a change of plans. You're dead, Chuckles."

"You say that like you think I'll go down without a fight," he said, and I was surprised to hear his voice. It sounded more manic and on edge than before, but it was still his. "I'm going to kill you and anyone else who stands in my way."

"I thought you were against killing," I said as we began circling each other, like wolves preparing to attack.

"I'm done protecting lives, none are worth saving. I was wasting my time out there trying to help them, and it took me so long to see it. For every life I saved, countless more were slaughtered. I wasn't making a difference, and if I was it was minimal and worthless in the grand scheme of things."

"I'm sure Batsy will be very happy to hear about this," I said, intrigued by this new, rebellious Robin.

"Don't talk about him. He's going to die, if not today then soon, because I gave away his secret." As he said this, his face filled with shame and regret, but not enough to really change anything. "The Joker tortured me, and I told him who Batman is, even though he didn't ask me to tell him."

"Who is Batman? Who's the man behind the cowl?" I asked him. I didn't actually expect him to tell me the truth of who he was, but it didn't hurt to try.

"You don't need me to tell you, no doubt the Joker will tell you soon enough," said Robin grimly, the shame and regret gone, replaced with insane determination. "I betrayed Batman, I let him and everyone else down, I became a murderer, I don't deserve to live. But I can't allow myself to be killed just yet. Before I die I'm going to kill the Joker for what he did to me. Batman won't kill him and he never will. He wouldn't kill him even after he paralyzed Barbara Gordon, or killed the Robin before me, even now that he took me away from him and broke me to make me like him. The only people who ever benefited from his stupid rule were the monsters he tried in vain to stop. I have nothing left, and I will kill the clown for destroying my life."

"So what are you going to do, kill Joker then throw yourself off a bridge?" I taunted. "There's no way you're just going to kill him and be done with it, even if you could pull it off, afterwards you'd only want more. Welcome to Club Crazy, my friend."

"I am not crazy," he said through gritted teeth. I could tell by the way he said it that even he didn't believe it.

"Oh you're not? I must have been mistaken. I guess I was just confused by the fact that you just broke the rule you swore you'd never break and you're telling me all about how you're going to do it again. But your shaky hands and feral eyes tell me that you are one hundred percent sane."

He lunged at me and I moved just at the last second so that he missed, but then he slashed at me, slicing off a lock of hair. I sliced open the shoulder of his suit as he came at me again. As I dodged his attacks and struck back, I noticed that in this state he was a more powerful opponent because he was taking risks he wouldn't have before, he wanted me dead and so he was more powerful as a result. But at the same time, in this maddened state, he couldn't think clearly enough to coordinate his attacks. I was the same, but I knew how to take that weakness and turn it into strength, he didn't. I guess some people were more suited to insanity than others. Even so, he was a formidable opponent. He had been a greatly skilled fighter before, but this side of him was more powerful than ever before, because he had one goal in mind, and he wasn't about to let anyone get in his way.

I punched his ear, and he retaliated by kicking me in my kidney. He then leapt on top of me, pinning me to the floor. He held his knife to my throat, and I used my free hand to stick my knife in his mouth. At that moment, I felt a strange warmth surge through me. Blood no longer flowed in my veins, electricity did. I no longer felt any grief or anger, only desire. I had liked Edward, but never had I felt this way about him, not even as I had murdered him. Any feelings for him hadn't been natural, they were forced, but here, with Robin, my heart was beating faster than ever before, and it wasn't due to exertion or the fact that he was about to kill me. I wanted Robin, I wanted every part of him. I longed to feel his hands on my throat, to feel the blade of his knife scar my snow-white skin. I wanted to feel his lips against mine as the city burned all around us. In that moment, I claimed Robin as mine and mine alone.

He stared down at me with utter hatred in his eyes, and the smile on my face grew wider as I felt him press the knife harder against my throat, but saw in his eyes that a battle was waging. I said nothing, letting him decide to kill me or not. I had no wish to die that night, but if it was by Robin's hand, I really couldn't complain. I was tempted to goad him on, but I stayed silent, curious as to what was going through his crazy brain as he glared at me with utter contempt.

"I'm wasting my time," he said as he pulled the knife away. "I need to kill Joker, you're just stalling me to help him."

"Do you really think the Joker needs me to help him against you? If he needed someone to watch his back for him he wouldn't still be alive today. But I think you do. Sure, you're a great fighter, but against the Joker, you might as well beat yourself with a crowbar and save yourself some time." At the look he shot me I added, "Too soon?"

"You're a monster," he growled. "But you're right, I need to prepare, to pick out the right weapons for inflicting every torture the Joker dealt out to his victims and then ending him." Robin got off of me and was about to exit through the broken window when he said without turning to face me, "The Joker is leading Batman to Crime Alley, behind the Monarch Theater."

"Why are you telling me this?" I asked.

"So that you won't follow me. I know that as tempting as it is to find the batcave, you're not about to let this opportunity get away from you. And you might as well be there, because the Batman will die at the hand of the Joker, and it's my fault." The shame and self-disgust returned, and I found myself a bit confused at his behavior. He was ashamed of himself for squealing on the Bat, but at the same time he seemed to want Batman to die, like he thought he deserved it. Maybe it was because he felt betrayed by the Bat, or was just fed up with his rule. Whatever was going on in his mind, it was so bizarre and insane that even I couldn't make sense of it, and I was shaping up to be the poster child for insanity.

"He told me where he would be taking him and invited me along, but I'll let you go instead. But mark my words, the Joker will pay dearly for what he's done. And once I'm through with him, I'm coming back for you."

Robin disappeared then, and I felt a bubbly feeling in my chest at the fact that he had lost the internal battle within himself and had let me live. That spoke louder than love notes and flowers ever could. Robin wanted me. Even in this insane, murderous frame of mind, he hadn't been able to kill me like he so obviously wanted to. I knew how insane my desire was, but now that Robin was also loony, it was obvious that we were destined for each other. How had I not seen it in the Joker's Circus? Perhaps I had, but hadn't realized it until now. Would he kill me the next time we met? I didn't know and I didn't care, I just wanted to fight him again, to have his blood on my knife and see the passion and fury in his eyes as he tried to take me down. What more could a girl want from her man?

Once I could no longer see him from the window, I also exited through the window, which was two stories up, and ran down the road looking for Crime Alley. As much as I would have loved to see the Batcave, this was more important. I would have to take a rain-check on it.

There weren't many people out at this time of night, but the few who saw me seemed very frightened by my appearance. They would gasp or scream and point at me or run, some even started screaming for the police. I took care of the screamers quickly and ignored the rest for the most part, but I had to admit that seeing the looks of fear on their faces brightened my mood. When I found Crime Alley, I saw that the Joker and Batman were already at it again. I decided to watch and wait a bit before I did anything, _if_ I did anything. Tonight would be the night when the Joker would finally kill the Batman, Robin had said so himself, and I would be there to witness it firsthand. I smiled as I pictured Batman weakly drawing in his last breath, before my father finally finished him for good.


	24. Chapter 24

**~Robin's POV~**

The human mind can be a very scary place. You think you know your own mind, you think yours is incorruptible and can't be touched. Even though you've seen people whose minds have become their worst enemy, you never think it will happen to you, you believe you're stronger than all the others. But when you finally realize that it can be corrupted, that your sanity can crumble without you even noticing, when you're forced to accept that you weren't strong enough to look evil in the face and come back whole and unscathed, let's just say it's a humbling experience, though I didn't feel very humbled then. It's frightening to think of what the human mind is capable of dreaming up, of what it's capable of causing its owner to do. People throw around the term "losing my mind" all the time, never understanding that that's not how it works. I still have my mind, I never lost it, but it's been broken so that it is no longer recognizable as my own.

The Joker forced me to play his sick game, but when he grew bored of that he got rid of the middle man and tortured me directly. For so long he caused me nearly every physical pain imaginable, but that's not what made me fall, although it certainly didn't help me stay sane. I knew how to deal with pain, and while he gleefully tormented me I focused on anything but the pain, something I'd had to teach myself to do in my time as Robin. But of course he wasn't just going to settle with physical torture, oh no. He showed me video clips of mankind at its worst: war, desolation, tragedy, depravity. He taped my eyes open and forced me to watch people go for each other's throats, to watch people suffer at the hands of others. He showed me things that no one should be able to see without feeling some level of empathy, but all he did was laugh as I screamed and pleaded desperately for him to stop. My only moments of relief came when he left to host the show, but even then the effects of the serums were still there, causing me to have delusions, making it so that the line between what was real and what was fantasy blurred until there was no longer a difference between the two. It was then that I truly began to lose myself. Even without the serums and hallucinations, it was still difficult to distinguish real memories from nightmares.

In my weakest state he told me over and over how stupid I was for following Batman, for believing in good and morals and decency. He told me over and over how pointless all this is, how the only sane option in a world like ours is to say 'what the hell' and do whatever we want, regardless of any consequence. It was almost too easy to ignore at first, but after hearing the same message day after day, while doped up on mind-numbing painful toxins and suffering unendurable pain, I began to crack. I felt myself slipping, and as hard as I tried to resist him, I couldn't stop the downward spiral. I held onto my sanity for as long as I could, but the Joker pried off my grip and forced me into the pit of insanity. I reached a point where I didn't care about anything anymore, where all I wanted was for the pain to end and I was willing to do anything to make it end. I told him Bruce's secret, and though I'm not proud of it, I can't say I regret it, or any of the decisions I've made since. There's no point to my own life or anyone else's, especially Joker's life. I don't know when I decided I would kill him, it was as if the idea simply fell into my head one day, and I had been fixated on it since. Every day since his torture began, he would present me with a newspaper of myself and Batman, and my costume. He had stripped me of it and forced me to wear a clown suit like his. He said if I would destroy the paper and the costume he would set me free, and for a long time I resisted. But there finally came a day when there was no point in fighting anymore. I tore up the newspaper like he told me too, along with my old costume, and he ended the torture. I immediately grabbed his throat and tried to strangle him, and he only laughed and threw me off of him like a ragdoll. He had barely fed me anything during that time and as a result I was terribly weak. I wanted to kill him, but even in my insane mind I knew it would be pointless, and that he might even kill me. I couldn't allow myself to be killed until I had made him suffer and ended him, which was why I was on my way to the Batcave.

I left the Joker's hideout, and as the sun began to peak out over the horizon, there was no way I could possibly get out of there without people noticing. People gasped and pointed and screamed and ran away at the sight of me, but I just kept on going, ignoring them.

I knew why they feared me, it was because of my face. At some point he had disfigured me, pulling up my cheeks in a permanent grin. It was when I first saw my new face that whatever sanity I'd had left was destroyed. I no longer cared about my appearance, it was just another reminder of why I had to kill the Joker, not that I needed any more reasons than the ones he's already given me.

At least it wasn't daytime yet, and the streets weren't crowded with too many ogling people. A group of four men tried to block my way when they saw me, but I swiftly killed them all, determined to let nothing stand in my way. I no longer cared about the consequences of my actions. The Joker had made me into a killing machine, and though I was well aware of this, I couldn't bring myself to care. I had to kill him, I became obsessed with thinking of every possible way of forcing him to experience the pain and fear that he had dealt out to others. I knew the lunatic well enough to know that pain would only amuse him, but I couldn't stop thinking about getting revenge, and as long as I put that animal down for good to stop him from filling anymore graveyards, that was what truly mattered. I didn't know what I would do after that, I couldn't see past my main objective, and so I would cross that bridge when I came to it. Maybe I would kill off the remaining rogues and anyone else who posed a threat to Gotham's safety, something Bruce was too weak to do. Or maybe I would allow myself to be killed. Neither option frightened me at this point like they would have before, either one would be just fine by me.

I flagged down a taxi and killed the driver inside so that I wouldn't be seen by anyone else and drove to Wayne Manor. As I entered the mansion, I felt a sense of irony. Here I was, finally back home, but as much as I had wanted to be back here before, now I only wanted to be out of there. I no longer had any wish to live there or to be Bruce's sidekick, and the sooner I got out of there the better.

I found the secret entrance and entered the Batcave. I would need to be prepared for what I would face, and this was as good a place as any to do it. There were plenty of weapons lying around here, though none of them were lethal. That could be changed.

As I was about to begin collecting weapons I heard a voice say, "Tim, is that you?"

I turned to locate the person who had spoken, and saw Violet approaching me. "Violet, what are you doing here in the Batcave?"

"When I left Arkham City, Batman was waiting for me, he'd seen what had happened," she explained. "I gave Bruce the device to cross through the shield and he was able to use it to figure out how to take down the force-field. It took a long time for him to figure out how to use it to lower the shield, but it finally worked."

"And he told you who he is?" I asked, briefly surprised that she knew who Batman was, and my real name, as well. I also noticed how unafraid she was of me. Instead of fear or malice, her eyes were filled with pity and compassion. I couldn't stand it.

"No, I figured it out a long time ago, as I did your identity, and the rest of the Bat-family, as well. Once I had put all the pieces together it wasn't hard to guess who you all were, but don't worry, I never told a soul."

"Why are you still here?" I growled at her.

"I have nowhere else to go. I'm not going back to Arkham asylum, and Barbara is letting me stay with her. What's wrong Tim? What did he do to you?"

"It doesn't matter, but what does matter is what_ I'm_ going to do to _him_."

"What are you going to do?" she asked softly.

"I'm going to kill him. As soon as I'm ready, I'm going to go after him."

"But what about your rule? I thought you were against killing."

"I don't care anymore. I'll kill him no matter what it takes, I don't care who I have to kill to get to him, all that matters anymore is that he dies for what he's done."

"What's happened to you, Tim?" she asked, her face full of concern. "The Joker deserves to die, but not by your hand. Did you just hear yourself? You said you don't care if other people die, all you care about is his life. You've become a monster, just like him."

"You think I don't know that? He made me like this, and that's why I have to be the one to end him. If Bruce can't bear to get his hands dirty then I will. After that I can finally die, and accept whatever fate awaits me on the other side after what I've done and will do."

"I can't believe this," said Violet, her expression a mix of grief, sadness, and a hint of anger. "You gave up, after I told you not to. You gave in and became this, how could you do this?"

"You don't know what you're talking about," I spat. "You have no idea what I've been through. The Joker took everything from me, I have nothing left, nothing left to live for."

"He hasn't taken everything from you," she said quietly as she looked down at her feet.

"What are you talking about?" I demanded.

She looked back up at me, her large violet eyes boring into me. "He didn't take everything from you. You still have people who love and care about you, a life to go back to, a home, and you have a name and identity. I don't have any of those things, because they were all stolen from me. When I was a baby I was kidnapped by a man named Gianni. He called me Pollyanna, and for nearly my entire life he kept me locked in his basement where no one could find me. He loved dolls very much, more than anything, and had dozens of them. He also had a music box with a spinning ballerina that played music all the time, and only quit when the wind-up key needed to be rewound. If I ever let it quit playing, Gianni would become upset and angry, so I always made sure that the music never stopped playing. It was a lovely tune, but even after all these years, I can still hear it in my nightmares.

"He would dress me up like a doll as well in frilly dresses, and he would tie up my hair in elaborate braids so that I would be pretty for him. Every day he would tell me how much he loved me, and that I was his favorite doll," she said bitterly. "I don't know how old I was when he took me, and I have no memories of my life before. He kept me in a tiny playroom with no windows and he never let me go outside that room. Because of that, I never knew there was a world outside. My entire world consisted of the playroom, the dolls, and Gianni."

"Did he ever, you know, have his way with you?" I asked. I could tell she was trying to distract me, and while I had no intention of forgetting my mission, I was curious to hear her story. I would deal with her afterward.

She shook her head and said, "He would never do that to one of his dolls, he said each one was special to him. But he hurt me in other ways. He never taught me to read or write, or even to speak. Whenever I even made an attempt at speech he would hit me, he said dolls aren't supposed to talk, so I never did. By isolating me from the outside world and molding me exactly how he wanted, he essentially stripped me of everything that made me human. There was very little difference between me and his other porcelain dolls, literally the only thing that separated them from me was that I had a beating heart. It wasn't a bad life, or at least, I was never able to realize how awful it was. Deep down I guess I always knew something was wrong, but because I had never been exposed to anything else, to the real world, I had no way of knowing just how wrong it was. I believed that was how everything was supposed to be. I wasn't happy, but I was content.

"But then I began to grow too old. Every year on my birthday he would grow angry at me, as though it was my fault I was aging. He had had two other girls before me, he called them Isabella and Evangeline. He kept them under the floor, and when it was their birthday he would bring me down with him to visit them. They were skeletons, dressed in the same kind of frilly princess dress he had me wear. He said that they had grown too old, and that the same thing was happening to me. More than once he told me that when I turned sixteen I would die. He told me this every day, he told me I would be going to be with Isabella and Evangeline forever, but it didn't scare me, I wasn't afraid to die, because I didn't even know what death was. There was so much I didn't understand then, I knew only what I learned from him. Because I didn't know any better, I believed that the other girls were just asleep when he took me to see them, and that whenever we left or weren't looking they would get up and move. I imagined them dancing like the ballerina in the music box, but I wondered why they looked so different from Gianni and me. I didn't want to look that way, or to live under the floor, but I trusted Gianni and so believed that he meant for death to be a good thing, and that everything would be okay.

"A few days before my sixteenth birthday, he left to find a new doll, a girl he referred to as Gwendolyn. When he told me about her, I found that in the pit of my stomach, I was afraid for this girl and wanted to stop Gianni, but at the time I didn't know why. My doctor later said that it was probably because on some level I knew he was evil. Coincidentally, he chose a three year old girl named Alice, who was also the target of the Mad Hatter at the time. Gianni got to her first, and in doing so led you and the Batman straight to me. Batman chased after Gianni while you came for me. You don't recognize me, but do you remember this at all? I don't expect you to remember me, you can't be expected to know the face of every person you save, but do you remember helping a nameless young girl escape her captor?"

"I think I do remember that, actually. You put up an impressive fight for someone with zero muscle tone," I said, remembering back. I did remember her, actually, though the memory was vague, and I could only see her and nothing else. She was wearing a frilly pink dress, the kind that little girls wear on Easter, except she was nearly an adult. Her hair had been tied up with matching pink ribbons, and she really had looked just like a beautiful porcelain doll. Her eyes had been filled with sheer terror, but for someone her size, she had put up a decent fight.

"I know, I remember. I had never seen another human besides Gianni and so I was terrified, and your mask and costume didn't help at all. At the time, I believed Gianni was my protector, and so I could only see you and Batman as dangerous. I resisted you, screaming, biting, and clawing at you like a feral child, and all you could do was try to drag me out of that room while trying to get me to calm down. But then you did something I will never forget until the day I die. To prove to me that you weren't a threat, you took off your mask. You risked exposing yourself to the world and Gotham's underworld, that simple act could have been your and Batman's undoing. But you did it anyway, and I'm sure you got a stern lecture from Batman for it later, just to calm me down enough so you could help me. At the time, I didn't understand why it made me trust you, but I came to realize now that it showed that you didn't become Robin just because you thought it would be cool to work at the Batman's side. You didn't do it because you wanted to be some superhero worshipped by the public, although I'm sure that played a small part in it. No, you became Robin because you genuinely wanted to help victims like me, because you believed in justice and wouldn't stand for wickedness. I saw that you had a good heart, instead of an over-inflated ego like one might expect.

"Before Batman could catch him, before he could even begin to question him, Gianni put a bullet in his head, and when I saw his body, it tore me apart. You both then took me to the police station, and you were the only reason I didn't put up another fight. I hated Batman, because I believed he had shattered my perfect little world. The police tried to get me to talk, to tell them what he had done to me. I never spoke a word to them, mostly out of habit, but also because I was afraid, and because I really didn't know how. I knew the words, but I didn't know how to speak them with my own mouth. They believed I was deaf and brought in an interpreter, and they even had the guy teach me some sign language so I could communicate, but I still wouldn't talk to them. They eventually had to give up on getting anything out of me, not that I had anything of worth to offer them. They tried to find my parents, but never did. I don't know if they're dead, or if they just moved on with their lives and forgot me," she said sorrowfully.

"They put me in Arkham asylum after that, and I was treated by Dr. Miriam Wise. After several failed attempts at getting me to respond to anything, all the other doctors gave up on me, all except her. She tried to help me, even though everyone else believed I was in a catatonic state, or that I was severely mentally challenged. She taught me to read and write, and that I didn't need to be afraid. She wouldn't let me quit, and she was the one who showed me how evil Gianni had been. It was in her sessions that I came to understand that you and Batman hadn't ruined my life, you had _saved_ it. She told me about other kids who had been kidnapped, success stories where the kids, whether they were missing for a few days or several years, were found and were able to rebuild their lives. She was trying to make me feel better, but she only made me feel worse. Why were those kids able to heal when I couldn't? Under her guidance I tried to recover, to become normal, but then Zelda killed her, and without her I gave up. I didn't even try to leave the asylum, I actually came to think of my cell as my home, because it reminded me of the playroom. I knew there was no way I could ever function in society, I couldn't speak, let alone take care of myself out there. I resigned myself to my fate in the asylum, until I heard about the Joker's plans for this game."

"What!?" I roared at her. "You knew about this before it started, and you didn't tell anyone?"

"I didn't know what to do, I wasn't even supposed to hear about it," she said whispered. "I was being evaluated by another of the doctors, even though they knew it was utterly pointless, when the Joker came in. The guy was also Joker's doctor so it didn't come as a huge surprise. He was accompanied by guards, but he had paid them off and they were on his side. One of them knocked my head against the desk, but he didn't do it hard enough and I didn't pass out, but I pretended that I had. The Joker was angry because he had found out the doctor was secretly working for a television company and was recording his sessions with him and selling them, and Joker wanted in on the profits. He killed him, but before he did he told him about his "better" idea for a show, and then he told him about the Joker's Circus. He mentioned bringing you in, but at the time I thought he was being theoretical about it. But then I got the invitation. I was going to turn him down, but then I remembered how he had said he would be kidnapping you and bringing you in. I owed a debt to you, but for so long I had had no idea how to repay you. I entered the game to help you survive in any way that I could. I didn't even know I could talk until that day in the sewer."

"Why are you telling me this?" I asked. "Do you really think it's going to make me forget my vendetta against Joker? It'll take a lot more than a sob-story to change my mind."

"I told you this because you need to understand. Helping you and watching you fight the Joker encouraged me to keep going, it made me believe that maybe there was some hope for me. Batman saved me, but you're the one who woke me up and helped me to finally begin healing. You have so much Robin, and you're throwing it all away. I don't miss my parents, or the life I could have lived, because how can I miss something I never had? I don't even know my real name, I have no true identity. I have no idea where I came from, or who I was meant to be.

"I often wonder who or where I would be now if Gianni hadn't taken me, but there's no point in dwelling on it because it doesn't matter anymore, because this is who I am and nothing can ever change that. Gianni took everything from me, he made me afraid of everything in the outside world. Miriam had to force me to go outside, because I was afraid of the sun and of the people out there. He altered my mind, brainwashed me as a child and tried to keep me young forever. Don't you see how much you have? Compared to me, the Joker has taken very little from you. He has done unforgiveable things to you, and you're about to let him win."

"Look at me!" I yelled at her, causing her to flinch. "He already has won. I've murdered, I've become insane just like all the rest, how can you say he hasn't won?"

"You're letting him win by doing these things. You've given up, like I did. If you kill him, he will have won. You know better than most that the Joker doesn't care if he lives or dies, all that matters to him is that he brings as many people down with him as possible, and he's in the process of bringing you down with him as we speak. But you can still beat him, Robin. Yes, you've murdered. Yes, your mind is no longer your own, but that doesn't mean there's no hope left for you. You still have a chance, but you're throwing it away, you don't realize what you still have. Three years ago a boy took off his mask and showed me his face, and underneath that mask I saw the eyes of a boy with a good heart, one that could never be truly corrupted. You can still beat the Joker, even though it doesn't seem like it. I know you're in their Tim, it's up to you to make the right choice."

I'm not quite sure what it was exactly she said that made me lose it, but as she spoke I felt myself sink to my knees on the floor. I screamed as the good and evil raged within me. I felt stuck, I no longer knew who I was. Was I just another one of Joker's victims, a toy he had created and thrown away? Or was I Robin, Batman's sidekick and fighter for justice? I didn't know anymore. I could no longer make any sense of my thoughts, I was losing myself all over again, but what would become of me this time? I felt great fear in not knowing myself any more. It was like looking into a mirror and not recognizing the face staring back at you. Of all the torturous things the Joker had done to me, they all paled in comparison to this. I would have taken the pain a hundred times over if it meant being free from this. In that moment I wanted nothing more than to die. I didn't care how it happened, all I wanted was to be free of this overpowering madness, and death was the only way out.

I felt Violet put a hand on my shoulder and I jerked away from her as I shouted, "Get away from me! Look what you've done to me! You've destroyed me!"

"I won't leave you Robin, I'll never leave you as long as you need me, and right now you need someone," she said, her voice calm and soothing, but it had no effect on me.

"If you want to help me, then kill me. Death is my only escape now, I can't endure this, it's too much to bear."

"I will not kill you," she said simply. "Tim, what you're facing right now is known as a fork in the road, that's about the best way to describe it," said Violet as she put her arms around me. "You have a choice now, you can give in and allow the monster inside you to consume you completely, or you can fight back and become the hero Gotham needs you to be. Only you can make this choice, the Joker only managed to bring you down to this level, he couldn't destroy your sanity completely. You still have a chance despite what you may think, and you can't remain on the fence anymore. You thought you had been completely corrupted, when you really were in no man's land. Please Tim, don't become a monster. This city needs you, and I know you don't want to become part of the evil that perpetually plagues this world. Death is not the only option, you can still be a shining light in a city full of darkness."

At first, her words made me feel even more torn. Part of me wanted to believe what she said was true, but the other part of me didn't want to hear it. The part of me that wanted to believe began to fight back, slowly and weakly at first, but slowly, gradually, I felt myself growing stronger. I fought off the darkness threatening to consume me with extreme effort, and even as I felt my mind grow stronger my body became weaker. I felt tears run down my face as the feelings inside me grew even more powerful. I felt like I was being slowly destroyed from the inside out, I felt like I should be dying, but wasn't. I felt great joy when my mind started to feel like it belonged to me again, but the pain was still there in full intensity.

I opened my eyes and saw that Violet was still there, tears running down her face as well. A small smile appeared on her face as she said, "You did it, Tim."

"I haven't, not yet. I need help, I'm still not sane. But you were right, you were right about everything," I said. I sounded more like myself than I had before, but to me my voice sounded like a stranger's.

"Don't worry, I won't leave your side until you don't need me anymore. Until then, I'll be here for you no matter what. You have my word."


	25. Chapter 25

**~Rose's POV~**

When I found Batman and Joker in Crime Alley, I got to watch them duke it out. They were pretty evenly matched, with Batman's strength against Joker's agility and insanity. I have to say, there is nothing cooler than watching your dad fistfight the Batman.

"So what do you think of my little girl, Bats?" asked Joker as he dodged one of Batman's fists. "How would you feel about being a Godfather? Or you could be Uncle Batman, I think that one has a ring to it."

"Why did you risk your daughter's life by making her play your demented game?" asked Batman through his teeth as he socked Joker in the jaw.

"Oh Batsy, you can't call me out on child abuse when you put your own kid's lives in danger every night," laughed Joker as he kicked Batman in the stomach.

"I should never have saved you, not in Arkham City, or any other time," growled Batman as he grabbed the Joker by the front of his shirt and shoved him roughly against the wall. "Every time you murder someone the blood is on my hands for not putting an end to you."

"The funny thing is, even if you finally do kill me, it won't change a thing," said Joker with a smug grin on his lips. "There are always a few wild cards in the deck Bats, even if they're not always obvious. You're right about how killing me would save innumerable lives, but there will always be others like me who don't add or take away from the equation. We just are. Life is a big joke, and once you allow yourself to believe that, only then can you be truly happy. I tried so hard to show you, but you would never listen to me." At this, he sounded almost hurt, as though he really had been only trying to help him.

"Go ahead and kill me if you think it will help, but it won't change a thing, because I'm only an agent of chaos, nothing more, nothing less. I may be different from everyone else in the world, but from the wild card perspective, I'm hardly unique, _Brucie_."

Batman froze for a split second, and I couldn't believe what I'd heard, and apparently, neither could Batman. Bruce, he'd called him. I'd known a Bruce or two in my time in the orphanage, but only one came to mind that could possibly be it. But could Bruce Wayne, spoiled, fancy-pants playboy millionaire Bruce Wayne truly be the legendary Batman, the man whose very name had crooks running scared? At first it seemed impossible, but after a bit of thinking it suddenly made sense. I mean, he probably didn't get that utility belt out of a cereal box. What about Robin then, and the rest of the Bat family? I suddenly realized who Robin was, as well, but quickly shoved the notion from my mind. Who cared who he _thought_ he was, as far as I was concerned, Robin didn't have a face underneath the mask. His face and identity was his mask, and his mask was his true face.

"That's right, Batcake, I know everything! Chuckles told me everything I could ever want to know about you. He didn't mean to of course, he fought so valiantly at first, but those serums do weird stuff to your mind, and combined with the all pain he went through, he was so out of it he was telling me things I hadn't even asked about. Such a nice kid, too bad he turned out the way he did, never saw it coming. But what I couldn't believe is how pathetic you are under that stern and stoic exterior. My greatest adversary is nothing more than a sad little boy crying out for Mommy and Daddy. It's so weak and pathetic it shouldn't be funny, but it's the funniest thing I've ever heard!"

The Joker laughed hysterically as Batman flipped him over onto to the hard, unforgiving pavement and grabbed him by the neck. I watched as he turned his neck sharply to the right, causing it to make a sickening snapping sound. At first it looked like Joker was dead, but then he spoke, his voice a hoarse whisper.

"So, paralysis huh? How am I supposed to dance at my wedding now?" he chuckled. "You don't actually think you can put an end to my pranks and antics this way? I'll have you know I can cause just as much murder and mayhem from a wheelchair." The Joker's voice was strained with pain and his breathing was labored, but I could tell he was enjoying it. Even so, at the same time, I heard the tiniest bit of annoyance. "Even after all this time, after everything I've done, you still won't kill me?"

"It's not my place to take life, even in its lowest form," said Batman bitterly. "A day doesn't go by when I don't think about subjecting you to every horrendous torture you've dealt out to others and then ending you."

"Aww, so you do think about me!"

"But I will not allow myself to stoop to your level, not now, not ever. Why can't you see all the pain you've caused for what it is? Everyone you meet, you either kill them or taint them with your cruelty. You even dragged your own daughter down with you. You created her not out of love, but out of fear and chaos, and forced her to become like the very darkness she was born in. She could have had a normal, happy life, but you just couldn't let her go, you corrupted her and filled her with your own madness. Not to mention, in the process of driving your own child insane you murdered seventeen children and many others, and endangered her life as well. Why?"

"Oh Bats, I can't expect you to understand, you obviously don't care about any of your kids as much as I care about mine. I killed one Robin and tortured another into madness, but you never did anything about it. You beat me up and locked me away, but you knew it wouldn't work. Why, if someone killed my little angel, I'd torture them until they were begging for something as sweet as pain, as merciful as death. Because as you know, I don't like to share with others, and if anyone's going to kill my little rosebud, it's going to be yours truly. But isn't she just the best, Bats? She turned out absolutely perfect in every way. How many parents can say that about their kids? I must be a really great dad, I should write a book. Rosie's going to make a fine replacement someday, just you wait and see."

"Your daughter still has a chance, and I will do everything in my power to save her from you," said Batman as he pulled out a pair of handcuffs.

"Is that so?" I said as I leapt on Batman's back and stabbed him in the abdomen. He cried out in pain and surprise as I moved down and drove my knife into his knee, causing him to fall to the ground. I was about to go in for the kill when something hit me in the back of the head.

"Ow!" I said as I rubbed my head.

"What do you think you're doing?" rasped the Joker angrily as he threw another piece of broken pavement at my head, which I neatly dodged. "Are you an idiot?"

"I was tired of listening to him talk, not to mention the fact that he just crippled you, I figured you could use some help," I said simply.

"You're ruining everything, I told you to stay out of this!" he growled. "Remember a minute ago when I was bragging on you? I take it all back."

"What was I supposed to do? Watch him escort you back to Arkham and tell a reporter about it?" I asked, kind of ticked off at him. Batman was trying to stand, but with his age combined with the wounds I had given him it was proving to be rather difficult. I noticed a crowbar by a dumpster and swung it at his head, knocking him out so he couldn't eavesdrop on us.

"Everything was going great until you intervened, you stupid girl. Batman wasn't going to take me back to Arkham, because one of us is going to die tonight," he said matter-of-factly.

"You mean Batman is going to die tonight," I stated as I dropped the crowbar at my feet, it clanged against the pavement.

"Come now Snow, neither of us are in our prime anymore, and neither of us are going to live forever. Our game has reached its end, there's a whole new world out there that we aren't meant to be a part of. Sad but true. It's your turn to play now, but either Batman or I must die, one of us must kill the other, and I'm afraid it must be me to go."

"What!?" I said incredulously, certain I had heard him wrong. "Look, I know you're crazy, but now you're not making any sense at all."

"Ever since the moment we first met, when he made me the happy soul I am today, I've wanted to kill him. I wanted to make a real show of it too, I wanted to do before all of Gotham so they could watch their mighty hero fall, but every time he survived I have to admit I was secretly glad, because it meant we could keep playing. Batman is the only real friend I've ever had, because he's the only person who can keep up with me. We understand each other better than anyone else ever could, we're anti-matter and matter, polar opposites yet made for each other. Without Batman, crime has no punch line, and if I kill him now, where will that leave me? I could take over Gotham or destroy it, and no one could stop me, not even Stupid-man. But what would be the point? What am I without my straight man? I don't expect you to understand this now Snow, but crime will be utterly pointless until you find your own straight man."

"Actually, I think I already do," I said as I thought of Robin. I now understood why I had let him live, because he would give me purpose in this new life. Good thing I hadn't gone against my gut and killed him, even though I really wanted to.

"Batman will miss me terribly, which is why I'm going to do him a favor before I pass on. He never did let himself rise to our level because he was too stubborn, too afraid of what he would find. I can't allow myself to die knowing he never got the chance to experience true madness, so I'm going to do the job for him. I'm going to kill myself, and everyone will think he did it. You watch, it won't matter that I'm the most despicable person on planet earth, they'll all turn against him if they think he's gone rogue. They'll think him a monster, as a few already do, and then he'll have no excuse to not let himself embrace the madness. Like a true friend should, I'm going to help him out and lead him down the path of wickedness so he can finally be happy. If Harley asks later, tell her Bats killed me off, she'll lose it!" he laughed.

"Harley's dead. Robin, er, I mean, Chuckles, killed her," I told him bluntly.

His expression shifted from one of mirth to one of fury in an instant. "I take the boy under my wing, give him free tutoring, show him the merrier side of life, and what does he do? He breaks my favorite toy, he kills my pet. That's gratitude for you. But at least it means he's on the right track," he said with a shrug as the anger left his face, for the most part.

He looked me in the eye and said with a broad smile, "I'm counting on you Snow, don't let me down. Come here," he said, and I knelt down before his broken body. He kissed my forehead and said, "Give 'em a good show, make Papa proud. Deliver the punch line."

"I will Dad, I promise," I said, and his smile widened even further at the word "Dad".

"I'll see you in the big asylum in the sky, Poppet," he said as he took his head in his hands and, with his remaining strength, twisted his neck until it snapped. With his final breath his lips curved up in a smile, one of triumph and happiness.

The sun was rising and Batman was beginning to stir. I could hear sirens in the distance, someone must have called the police, and in that moment I knew what I had to do.

I ran out of the alley to meet the police pulling up and shrieked, "The Joker is dead! Batman just murdered the Joker!"

The cops pulled out their guns and pointed them at me and I pretended to be afraid. I put my hands in the air and let tears run down my face as I screamed, "Please don't shoot me! I need your help, the Bat killed the Clown and now he's after me! Batman murdered my father!" I noticed Commissioner Gordon and smiled inwardly as I threw myself into his arms, making myself look distraught and confused. "Please sir, don't let him hurt me."

Gordon slapped a pair of cuffs on me and put me in the back of his car and took me downtown. He went through all the rigmarole of getting my prints and taking mug shots of me looking hysterical. After that was done he took me to a tiny room with one-way glass and a table with a chair for me and him.

"Have your men caught the Bat yet?" I asked quietly, working to keep my expression frightened and suppress my laughter. Gordon obviously didn't trust me, not by a long shot, but right now he didn't know what to make of me. I could also tell he didn't believe my story, but for the time being he had to at least consider the idea that I might be telling the truth while he interrogated me. He seemed to pity me on some level, perhaps he even thought I was capable of saving. How cute.

"They're still searching, but I doubt we'll be able to catch him, we've never done it before," said Gordon as he looked me right in the eye. "But I'm reluctant to believe what you told me. The Batman has always staunchly refused to commit murder, so I find it hard to believe he would do so now."

"Everyone has a limit, Commissioner," I said as I twirled a lock of hair in my fingers. "It doesn't take much to break a man, the Bat could only fight so long. He was stronger and more stubborn than most, but in the end no one is left standing. If you had told me when I was a little girl that one day I would become this, I'd have thought you were crazier than all the patients at Arkham combined, but just look at me now. To be fair, my mind wasn't put together very well in the first place," I said as I flashed him a grin. I was done with the disturbed girl act, because it was no longer necessary. It didn't matter that Gordon didn't believe me, as long as the other cops were spreading the story, whether they believed it or not.

"You're his daughter," said Gordon, as though trying to wrap his head around the very notion. "You're his _child_, but that doesn't mean you have to be like him."

"True, but maybe I _want_ to be like him," I said. "Say Commish, did it ever occur to you that if you killed me, you'd be avenging your own daughter? An eye for an eye, as they say. Sure, Daddy's not around anymore to appreciate the effort, but it's the thought that counts, right?"

Just then, out of nowhere Nightwing appeared.

"Nightwing!" I greeted cheerfully. "What a nice surprise, I didn't even hear you come in. Will you be joining our little tea party? Gordon was just about to get us some tea, would you like one lump of sugar, or two?"

He ignored me and said to Gordon, "I'll take over from here."

There were many questions in Gordon's eyes, but he silently left the room.

He looked at me with a dark scowl on his face and said "So you're the Marionette."

"In the flesh. Would you like an autograph?"

"You and I both know that Batman didn't kill the Joker."

"But he did kill him, didn't you see the body? He didn't exactly die of natural cause."

"I did see the body, it was you who killed him."

"Now you're really jumping to conclusions. I had no reason to kill my old man, I might have eventually, but not now."

"You were eager to get him out of the way so you could have the spotlight all to yourself, and now you're trying to pin it on Batman," said Nightwing, smoothly concealing his anger.

"Speaking of which, where is the Bat? Shouldn't he be the one interrogating me? Then again, this being his first murder and all, he probably wants to lay low for a while, savor the feeling of bloodshed."

"Where's Robin?" he asked, switching topics since this one was getting him nowhere fast. I knew Nightwing was an excellent vigilante, but my Robin was far above him. At the very least he dressed better.

"You mean Chuckles? Well let's see, he killed my Mom and then we split up. He's probably at a burger joint somewhere."

"Robin would not kill Harley, enough lies," said Nightwing, that controlled anger of his slowly becoming less controlled with every word I spoke.

"How would you know? You didn't even know she was dead until I just mentioned it. Besides, you don't know him like I do, not anymore. He's not the kid you used to know, he had a bad day and now he's one of us," I said as I grinned at him.

"I know him, and he would never sink to your level. Where is he? What did the Joker do to him?"

"So Nightwing, will you be taking over as the Batman now that the original has gone off the deep end?"

His scowl deepened as he said, "There's no need for me to take over."

"But there is. With the Bat and the little Bird gone psycho, I'd say Gotham is running low on heroes. But you know, even if what I'm saying isn't the truth, how much difference do you think it will really make? No doubt the press is all over this story already, and they've been desperately waiting to catch Bats with his hand in the cookie jar since day one. They'll lap this up, and as much as the fair citizens of Gotham won't want to hear it, they'll have to listen, and that tiny seed of doubt will be planted, just like I'm planting it in your head now. I can see it in your eyes, you would never believe that they had gone rogue without solid proof, yet you feel the tiniest hint of fear that I am telling the truth. Before long, everyone in Gotham will see Batman as the enemy even though they've wanted the Joker dead for years, because they're afraid of what he's capable of. Everyone wants the rogues dead, but if Batman starts offing them they'll turn on him without hesitation, he'll become their scapegoat. He represents good, and since everyone is inherently bad at heart, they can't understand good, and they hate it. They hate the rogues but at least they can understand them, but they've been waiting for Bats to slip up whether they realize it or not. Even though they may fight the darkness inside, it's always there, and so they fear the Batman and all he stands for, more than they could ever fear any villain. It's why my father was so fascinated with Bats, because he represented chaos and disorder, everything the Batman isn't, and since he couldn't understand it, he sought to destroy, not the man, but the good within him. You see, in death, the Joker accomplished something he never could have in life, he turned the tables on Bats and made the people believe him to be an evil predator while making himself out to be a martyr. Not yet of course, but give it time and the Joker will be the hero, and Batman will become the villain. So in the end it doesn't matter who killed the Joker, because he's already won."

He got right in my face as he said lowly, "Batman and Robin have not been corrupted, nor will they ever be. Batman has always been at odds with the world, there have always been people who believed him to be no better than the scum he cleaned off the streets. But there have always been people who believed in him, not because he dressed in a cape and cowl and saved the day, but because they believe in what he stands for: justice. I'll admit there is bad in everyone, but there is also good, and that is what we fight for. They believe the world is worth saving, and strive to make it a better place despite the cost to them. The Joker may have won this battle, but he will never win the war, because as long as there is evil, good will rise to fight it."

"Perhaps," I whispered in his ear. "But there is no such thing as good, decency, or morality. Sometimes there appears to be, but in the end it never lasts. It's why Gotham cannot be saved, because of people like me upsetting the established order. There's always a Joker in the deck; my father was nothing more than a catalyst, the spark that set the already volatile Gotham city ablaze, and it's my duty to keep that fire burning bright until I draw my last breath."

He opened his mouth to speak, but suddenly got a call on his earpiece. Whoever it was only got out one sentence before he abruptly hung up and made to leave the room.

"Leaving so soon?" I asked.

He paused at the door and said, "They found Robin."

"Oh goodie, now maybe you'll believe what I said. Tell him I said hi. Oh and Nightwing," I said as he opened the door and stepped out. "I nominate Robin to be the next Batman."

He left the room without a word, but I knew he heard me. As soon as he was gone, Gordon and a couple of cops came for me and delivered me to a holding cell, where I would stay until I was taken back to Arkham asylum. Half an hour later a couple of guys came to pick me up, but by then I had decided that I wasn't ready to go back just yet. As we were driving, inside the truck I escaped my cuffs, a trick I had taught myself back in the Joker's mansion in between challenges, and once they opened the doors to let me out I attacked. There were only three guys there to bring me back in, and while I was disappointed at that because it meant they didn't think I warranted any more security than that, at least it would make my escape easier. I picked up a jagged rock from the ground and leapt on the back of one of the guards and sliced open his throat. I then took his gun and shot the remaining two guys, did a flip off the guy's back, and made a run for it, laughing all the way. I could hear alarms going off and guard shouting orders at each other. I saw a car coming my way and ran right in the middle of the road waving my arms like a lunatic, causing them to swerve and run into the fence surrounding Arkham.

"Way to go pal, you just wrecked my new car," I said as I pulled the unconscious body out of the car and hopped in. "Don't worry boys, I'll come back home soon enough," I said with a grin. "But for right now I have important business to take care of with Mommy and Daddy."

**~Robin's POV~**

As Violet and I entered the mansion through the secret entrance to the Batcave, the house felt very foreign to me, like it did when I first came to live here, like it was a stranger's house. But I knew the truth, I was the stranger.

"Tim!" I heard someone say. I turned and saw Barbara in she rolled up to me with tears in her eyes as she said, "Thank God you're all right, we were all so worried."

She reached out with her hand to take mine and I instinctively pulled back, causing her to raise her eyebrows and pull back her hand as she said, "Tim, what's wrong?"

I didn't know what to say. I didn't want her to see me this way, when I was falling apart and the only thing holding me together was a girl I barely knew. How could I tell her, or Batman and Nightwing for that matter, what I had done, what I had allowed myself to become?

"Robin needs time to adjust, a lot has changed in the past few weeks," Violet explained for me.

"What did the Joker do to you, besides the stuff I saw on TV?" she asked, concern in her voice. "Tim, you don't look well at all, you should sit down. I'm going to call Bruce and Dick," she said as she pulled out a cellphone and began dialing.

"Barbara's been so kind to me," said Violet. "After I gave them the key to taking down the shield she let me move in with her.

"Bruce also offered to let her stay here, but I figured she could use girl company that doesn't include mental patients. Besides, I could use some girl time myself," said Barbara. A small smile appeared on her face momentarily, but was quickly replaced with a look of concern for my well-being. "Sit down Tim, you look like death."

When I didn't move, Violet gently nudged me in the direction of a couch and I sat down and put my head in my hands, and Violet continued. "She's even promised to take me shopping sometime. I've never gone shopping before, I wonder what it will be like," she said in an attempt to distract me. It didn't work, but I appreciated the thought. She didn't touch me or try to speak to me anymore, she let me have my space, and I was grateful for that. She was there for me, but she didn't try to force herself on me like a mother. It was then that I came to think of her as a friend instead of a nuisance, she was like my very own guardian angel, sent to help heal my fractured mind.

It took Nightwing and Batman to a long time to get back, which wasn't unexpected given the fact that Joker was on the loose. Dick arrived first, but when Bruce got back, it was clear that he was injured. He had come in the Batcave in the Batmobile and had somehow made it up the stairs. We helped him onto the couch we had been sitting on. He was still in the Batsuit but had taken off his mask. His abdomen was bleeding and his knee was injured badly, it would definitely need surgery.

"Did Joker do this? What happened out there, Bruce?" asked Dick as he went to get some towels to staunch the flow of blood. How was Bruce going to explain this to the doctors at a hospital? Gone were the days when we could go to Leslie Thompkins for medical treatment. She was in a nursing home, no longer able to do what she loved: help people heal. The thought of her reminded me of Alfred and I felt a pang of sadness. I wished he could be here now, as I had never fully appreciated him when I'd had the chance.

"The Joker is dead, his neck was broken," said Bruce, his face contorted with pain. "I'm not sure who did it, though. Marionette is a suspect, but she doesn't have much motive for killing him. No one else was in there, so I believe he may have killed himself."

"You think Joker broke his own neck? Is that even possible?" asked Violet. "And why would he do that to himself?

"The Joker's strength came from determination and will, he was a strong believer in the old saying, 'if there's a will there's a way,'" said Bruce. "As for the why, I'm not entirely sure. But right now I need to talk to Tim, alone," he said as he looked at me.

As the others left I felt all my shame and humiliation and failure wash over me. I had talked to Bruce in my dreams, but those dreams would be nothing close to reality. I decided to begin the "talk."

"I can't be Robin anymore," I began bluntly. I couldn't believe I was saying it, but it was the responsible thing to do. The only thing to do. "The Joker got to me, I've done terrible things, I'm no longer worthy of being at your side."

"The Joker forced you to murder Jack-"

"I killed Harley and other people as well, all of my own volition, and the only reason I didn't go after Joker is because Violet managed to talk some sense into me. I don't know what I would have done after that. I'd be doing more harm than good as Robin."

Bruce took a while to respond, and when he did, he said, "Tim, have you ever heard the story of the Prodigal Son?"

"Yeah, but I don't see how that applies here. The son blew his inheritance money, I stole people's lives. I'm sorry Bruce, you don't know how sorry I am," I said as I turned away, no longer able to look him in the eye.

"Tim, you made mistakes, you took people's lives, but you won't be doing anyone any good if you choose to give up. You're not ready to go back out there yet, but I have complete faith in you that you will do great things for this city."

"You can't actually mean that."

"I do. Tim, this city needs you, because I can't fight for it any longer."

"What do you mean?" I asked as I turned back to face him again.

"I'm old, Tim. I've tried to deny it, I've ignored the aches and pains, but I can't keep this up. Marionette could have killed me with incredible ease out there today, I don't know why she didn't. But she did give me this wound, and even if I wasn't already in bad shape this wound will likely cripple me. My time as Batman has come to an end, yours is just beginning."

"I won't become Batman, Nightwing deserves that honor. I let myself fall into madness, and I have too much blood on my hands for that. I can't do it anymore Bruce, it would be a mistake."

Bruce nodded and said, "So be it. I still believe you could be a great Batman, but I won't force it on you. I would never force this life on anyone."

It meant a lot that Bruce had such faith in me. It gave me a bit of hope that maybe he was right, maybe I could be the next Batman. But no, I wasn't deserving of that privilege, I had already accepted that.

"Bruce, this can't wait any longer, you have to go to the hospital," said Barbara as she wheeled herself into the room.

Dick and I helped Bruce out of his suit and into his street clothes and helped him to the car. His alibi would be that he had been mugged, and in a city like Gotham, who was going to argue that? Dick climbed into the driver's seat and sped off. Barbara, Violet and I needed to stay here to figure out what had happened to the Joker and what this would mean for Batman, and for Gotham.

"Violet?" I asked. "Just out of curiosity, how did you know who I was?"

"It was easy. I saw you on TV as the ward of Bruce Wayne once at Arkham, and it just seemed obvious to me. It wasn't difficult to discover the secret identities of Batman and Nightwing and Batgirl, either. Don't worry, your secret is safe with me, it always has been."

"Thanks Violet, for everything," I said, and I really meant it.

"Just repaying a debt long overdue," she said simply.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Author's Note:<strong>__ The final showdown between Batman and Joker was based on the comic, The Return of the Dark Knight. Also, Tim's extreme makeover was inspired by the movies Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker and Under the Red Hood. If you haven't read/seen them, go and do so immediately and quit depriving yourself._


	26. Chapter 26

**One Year Later**

**~Marionette's POV~**

"_The hills are alive, with the sound of music! _

_With songs they have sung for a thousand years. _

_The hills fill my heart with the sound of music, _

_My heart wants to sing every song it hears!_" I sang as I descended the stairs from my bedroom to the kitchen of my vacation home.

Hardly noticing, I abruptly changed songs as I danced around the cute little cottage I had been living in. "_For what's the sound of the world out there? _

_Those crunching noises pervading the air! _

_It's man devouring man, my dear! _

_And who are we to deny it in here?_"

The owners of this place, the sweetest elderly couple you've ever met, had no children and so they had taken me in as their own and let me stay with them. It was so kind of them to do so, not many people would open their hearts and home to someone like me. I mean sure, I had had to break open a window to get in and force them to let me stay at knifepoint, but all things considered, they were pretty good sports about it. I looked down and noticed something on the floor that wasn't supposed to be there. A human arm bone with the hand still attached. And here I thought I'd gotten rid of the Smiths, or whatever their last name had been, a long time ago, but I must have forgotten a piece.

"At least now I know I wasn't imagining that smell," I giggled as I heard a knock on the front door. I went to open it and found a twelve year old boy with a newspaper in his hand, his face pale and sweaty, his hands shaking. The sun was just beginning to rise, and the people in this poor excuse for a neighborhood had yet to begin their day.

"Riley, you're here early today! Such a good boy, you are," I said pleasantly as I took the newspaper from him. I patted him on the head and said, "I'll see you bright and early tomorrow!"

Riley ran off as quickly as he could as I began reading the paper. Riley lived across the street and was the only person who knew I was here, and we had a little arrangement. He would bring me a newspaper every day and anything else I needed or wanted and wouldn't rat me out, and in return I had killed the bullies who had once terrorized him so viciously.

Something on the front page of the paper caught my eye. It was the date, and if it was right it meant it had been a full year since my rebirth. Could that really be possible? It didn't feel like a year at all. One week maybe, but not an entire year.

Then again, with the way I had been living, it was easy to lose track of time. I spent most of my time at the kitchen table working on my future plans for Gotham, making sure each and every one of them was perfect. Ideas came to me whether I wanted them to or not, some good, others not so good, and some that were so good I had to write them down to make sure I they weren't lost in the great expanse of my hyper-active mind.

Since I had moved here, I hadn't left the house once. The couple who had lived here had been receiving food from a local charity program designed to keep seniors fed, and since the Smiths had left, I had decided that it would be a shame to let that food go to waste. The food sucked, but until I left this place behind it would do. If I needed anything else, Riley was there to get it for me, but for the most part I just had him get the newspaper so that I could stay in the loop, and because it was always entertaining to read about all the chaos going on in town.

It had been a whole year, where had the time gone? It was then that I began to realize that no longer did I have a past or a future. There was only the present, only it mattered, and so time no longer held any meaning for me, unless I was using it to count down the seconds of a bomb or to strategize a heist or scheme. But even then it mattered little, and having to use it at all annoyed me. But at least now I could finally put my plans in action. It was time for the Marionette to make her big debut to her adoring public.

I began preparing myself for the day ahead by going into the bathroom and applying my "normal" makeup, and as I did I thought back to what had become of Gotham since it was rocked to its core by the Joker's demise a year ago.

At first, everyone had been thrilled and ecstatic when they had caught wind of the news, they finally felt safe and free of the clown man who had terrorized them for so long. But after a while they began to wonder if perhaps the real source of their problems was the man who had put down the clown once and for all, the Batman. Most of Gotham had regarded him as a hero, but there had always been the few who believed Batman was no good and wanted to expose him for the rat that he was, but had been unable to due to lack of evidence. But after the Joker's "murder" everyone began to doubt the Bat. They didn't want to think that way, they wanted to believe in his goodness, but in a surprisingly short amount of time, the Joker became a martyr in the eyes of the people and Batman became public enemy number one. Useful idiots, that's what they are. Despite her biggest threat having gone, Gotham became worse than ever, which of course is how the Joker planned it. He left an indelible mark, not just on Gotham, but on the entire world. Even if he hadn't orchestrated his own death or created me to pick up where he left off, his legacy would not have been forgotten. The world could never forget someone like him, and although I knew for a fact that I would never be able to take his place or outdo him, that wouldn't stop me from trying.

I hadn't seen Batman since the incident in Crime Alley. Or at least, I hadn't seen the real Batman. For a week after the incident there was no one protecting the streets of the city and crime ran rampant. But then the new Batman appeared, and even though I didn't know who he was or who the old Batman had been, from the second I first saw him on the news I knew he wasn't the real deal. Pseudo-Batman was younger, more agile, and fought slightly different than the real one. But despite the differences almost no one in Gotham noticed or cared. They saw Batman as a sort of divine entity, an immortal being who was more myth than man. To them he was legend, and legends never die, so whether or not the people realized this was a new Batman, they treated him as though he was the old one.

I also hadn't seen Robin since then, either. I wondered if he had given up crime fighting, or maybe Batman had had to lock him in the funny farm. The idea of Batman being forced to commit one of his precious sons was hilarious, but it would mean that he couldn't play anymore. Faux-man would be an acceptable replacement, but he just wasn't worthy of being my arch-foe, only Robin was. Without him, crime would have no punch line and would be incredibly boring and pointless.

The thought depressed me, but being the optimist that I am, I ignored those downer thoughts and finished working on my disguise. I changed out of my normal clothes and into a lavender jacket, black leather gloves, and black jeans and black boots. I adjusted a raven-black wig over my green ringlets and put the final touches on my skin-colored makeup. I had several hours before my date tonight, and so I worked on the masterpiece I had been painting in the living room while I waited. It was a painting of my Robin and I, with Robin tied upside down over a tank of acid, using a batarang to cut the ropes to escape while I hurled razor-sharp playing cards at him. I was determined to make the painting a reality, by forcing Robin out into the open for a play-date.

That evening, as soon as the sun went down, I left the house and walked to Crime Alley. There were already two other people waiting there, a boy and a girl. The girl had light blonde hair with blue streaks in it, and the boy had long, dark brown hair and several facial piercings and tattoos. They both looked eager and excited, but they stopped talking to each other as soon as they saw me. None of us spoke to each other as we waited in the chilly night air. Ten minutes after I arrived, two teens showed up in costumes and clown makeup. Jokerz.

"You guys the new recruits?" asked one of them, a girl with dark skin and even darker eyes. We nodded. "Then come with us," she ordered.

We followed them by the light of the full moon. No one we passed on the way paid us any attention. They led us to the very heart of Gotham, which was marked by an old wishing well. The boy Joker climbed in and the other motioned for us to do the same.

"You're holding initiations in a well?" asked the girl. "Couldn't this have been done in a building somewhere?"

"Nope, it has to be here," the girl Joker replied. "What, you afraid of getting a little wet?"

"No, of course not," she said defensively as she folded her arms against her chest.

"Good, because the water is the least of your worries down there," she said, smirking. "What are your names, by the way?"

"Ember Tonks," said the girl.

"Phillip J. Mulder," said the guy.

"Dee Dee Dennis," I told her.

"I am Rouge, leader of the Jokerz," she said, as though she were royalty. Her costume consisted of a dark red suit that barely covered her, and makeup that barely passed as clownish. She clearly hadn't become alpha wolf in a Joker look-alike contest.

"I'd have thought that the head honcho of a gang created in the image of a clown would at least attempt to play the part," I commented.

She scowled at me and said, "Being in the Jokerz gang doesn't require you to look like a clown, it's just encouraged."

"Personally, I think you chose the wrong gang. Perhaps the girl-scouts would have been a more appropriate choice?" I retorted.

She whipped back her hand and slapped me across the cheek. It had been a while since I'd felt actual pain, and so the sting was kind of nice and refreshing. But despite the pleasure I got out of it I wiped the grin off my face in favor of a more obedient expression to play the part right.

"If I were you I'd learn some manners, you're lucky I'm still going to let you try out for a place in our gang," she said as she looked me right in the eye in an attempt to force her will and dominance over me. "You will respect me, is that clear?"

I said nothing, I just put my head down in defeat, which seemed to satisfy her.

"Go down into the well, once you're there Jolly Joe will explain the rules of our little initiation ritual."

I swung a leg over the side of the well and found that there was an old, rickety ladder that led to the bottom. I climbed down and Mulder and Tonks followed suit. At the bottom of the well there wasn't much water but hundreds, if not thousands, of coins. The space down there was barely big enough for all of us to fit. Jolly Joe was there waiting for us, his look much more clownish than Rouge's.

"To pass initiation, all you have to do is stay down here until we come for you," said Jolly Joe.

"Pfft, you call this an initiation?" scoffed Mulder. "I was expecting a drive-by shooting or a prank on the police or something, but this'll be too easy."

Jolly Joe smiled as he pointed behind him and said, "Sure about that?" Mulder and Tonks both gasped when they saw what he was pointing at. Behind him lay a skeleton wearing a ragged purple suit. The skeleton still had some hair, which was grassy green. It faced us; its eyes seemed to focus on us so intently that it almost seemed alive, and its mouth seemed to smile at us, as though it was happy to see us.

"Th-That isn't… it can't be…" Tonks trailed off.

"That can't be the real thing, it's got to be fake. The Joker isn't dead like everyone says, it's just a rumor." said Mulder confidently.

"After the Joker was pronounced dead, his body was taken back to the morgue, where it was stolen. The police searched all over for it but never found it 'cause they weren't looking in the right place," said Jolly Joe. "If you think it's a fake, feel free to touch it."

Mulder's face drained of color and he took a step back.

"All you have to do is keep the big man company for one night and you pass. But if you can't do it, you best make a run for it, 'cause we don't want nobody findin' out about this, and we certainly don't like cowards," said Jolly Joe. He grinned as he said, "See you in the morning!"

"Might as well make ourselves comfortable," I said pleasantly as I sat down on a damp stone. Mulder and Tonks stared at me for being so calm, and stood for a while to keep from getting their clothes wet, but eventually gave up and sat down. I could tell by the looks on their faces that they were already having second thoughts. Though they tried to hide it, the fear was evident in their stance and in their eyes. They shivered and kept glancing at the skeleton in the corner as though expecting it to come to life and eat their brains. After about an hour or so, Tonks stood and made for the ladder.

"I can't take this anymore, that skeleton is creeping me out. I didn't want to be in the Jokerz gang anyway."

She climbed up the ladder, and as soon as she was out I heard a scream that was abruptly cut off by a gunshot.

I tried to make small talk with Mulder, but he was barely listening, his eyes focused on the corpse in the room.

"So why are you interested in joining the Jokerz?" I asked. No response. "You got a girlfriend?" I tried again. Still nothing. "I'm the Joker's daughter, you know," I tried one last time. He only grunted, which annoyed me. I was bored down here and trying to make friendly conversation, and all he could do was stare at the third guy in our group. I picked up a fist-sized rock and threw it at his head, snapping him out of his stupor.

"You think the Joker's dead, right?" I asked, and he nodded. "Why don't you share with the class why that is when all the evidence before your eyes is telling a different tale."

"The Joker's supposedly died dozens of times, why should I believe he's dead now? That's what he wants us to think, so that he can get the drop on us. I ain't fallin' for it. That thing over there is made of plastic, probably stolen last Halloween."

"And yet, you can't help but wonder if Jack Skellington over there is the real deal. Why don't you touch him, see if he feels like plastic. Or are you too afraid? I've seen braver grannies than you, you're pathetic. Go on, prove it to yourself, prove that the Joker still lives, along with Elvis and Santa Claus."

"All right, I will," he said with his chin held high. He stood and slowly moved towards the skeleton. Nervously, he stretched out his arm and touched the skull. As he brushed his fingers against it, the skull tilted slightly and the mouth dropped wide open. I could practically hear the Old Jester cackling at us, and by the look on his face Mulder was the same. Completely freaked out, his unmentionables more than likely soiled, he turned and made a run back for the rickety ladder, slipping and falling in the water once or twice.

"What's the matter? Worried he'll come back to life and turn you into a clown zombie?" I called after him as he tried to climb the ladder. In his fear and haste he was having trouble keeping a firm enough grip on the bars to climb up. "Or maybe you're just afraid he'll eat your brain. I wouldn't worry though, there's obviously nothing in there for him to snack on."

He finally made it out, and I heard another gunshot, then one extra. What was with these guys? Either they hadn't taken Joe's warning very seriously, they'd forgotten due to fear, or they just didn't care. Were they really willing to take their chances with armed gangsters than spend the night with a dead clown? It looked like it.

"Looks like it's just me and you, Daddy," I said to the amused skeleton. "We have so much to catch up on, what would you like to talk about first? My grades in school, perhaps? Any boys I'm interested in? By the way, can I borrow the car? I promise I'll be back by eleven."

I spent the rest of the night having a delightful conversation with good old Dad, filling him in on what had gone on in my life, and what had become of Gotham. By the time the sun rose, casting a bit of light down the hole, I was in a heated argument with him.

"Well Dad, time's up. I look forward to our next outing, we'll have to invite Mom and Jr. to come with us. Sleep tight, don't let the maggots bite," I said with a laugh as I climbed the ladder.

When I had exited the well, I found Rouge and Jolly Joe there, waiting for me.

"So, you made it," said Joe, sounding slightly impressed. "A lot of people chicken out, some more than once. How'd you do it?"

"Well, I have been meaning to pay Daddy a visit, he gets so lonely down there, and he just loves it when I drop by," I said with a sigh.

"What are you talking about?" asked Rouge, anger and a hint of disbelief in her voice.

"I want to thank you for taking care of him, I was worried someone might find him and steal his body or vandalize it in some way, but you guys have done an excellent job with the upkeep. I guess you could say the reason I wasn't bothered by him is because _I put him there_."

Rouge tried to stare me down again, but Joe took a step back and said, "You don't mean…"

I pulled a wipe out of my pocket and quickly cleaned the cheap makeup off my face, and I pulled the wig off and let my emerald locks flow freely. "That's right, Jolly. Live and in person, I give you the Joker's little angel, the Marionette! Here to take over this shameless mockery you call a Joker gang."

"I don't think so. I don't care who you are, I'm staying in charge. I'm not about to let some brat boss me around just because she's got blood ties to the Joker," said Rouge. She pulled out a gun, and in the time it took for her to aim I was at her throat with my knife.

"Aw, and here I thought we really had a connection," I giggled at the fear in her eyes as I sliced open her throat. I let her convulsing body fall to the ground and pointed my knife at Joe. "Would you also like to challenge me?"

"No ma'am," he said, fear and awe in his expression.

"Are you sure? Wouldn't you like to lead the gang now? You'd make such a better leader than I," I said as I pulled out a couple more knives from my pockets and juggled them in the air.

Joe gulped and vigorously shook his head and said, "I've always been more of a follower than a leader, if you know what I mean. Why don't I introduce you to the rest of our gang, I'm sure they're just dying to meet our new leader."

"That would be lovely, Mr. Jolly," I said with a smile.

Jolly Joe hailed us a taxi and killed the driver. As he drove us to the Jokerz hideout, it became apparent that when Joe was nervous he became the thing that wouldn't shut up. I enjoyed conversation, but whatever popped into his head came out no matter what it was, and besides, I liked talking better when I was the one doing it.

I tuned him out and watched the people outside begin another day in the never-ending cycle of their meaningless little lives. As I did, I thought of the last time I'd seen Mom and Pop. After I'd escaped police custody I went back to Joker's hideout and took Harley's body and buried it next to Junior. After I had buried her I found a stone and carved into it with my knife:

_Here lies Harley Quinn_

_Everyone has seen the Joker laugh, Harley was the only one to see him cry_

I felt it was a fitting epitaph. I didn't know if she had ever actually seen him cry or if he had even been capable of such emotion, but I did know that she knew him like no one else, and that if there ever had been anything remotely human inside him, she was the only one who ever saw it.

I then had to steal the Joker's body from the GPD, which was no easy task. The police were protecting his body from the people who wanted nothing more than to tear him apart, regardless of the fact that he was already dead. They hadn't wanted anything to happen that would reflect badly on them, which was why they reacted so strongly to the theft of his body. They searched for weeks for it, and gave up only after it became apparent that they weren't going to find it.

Harley would have wanted to be buried next to her Puddin', but I knew the Joker wouldn't want to be buried in some plain old cemetery, so I found an even better resting place. I studied several maps of Gotham and found that the center of Gotham, the heart of the city itself, was marked by an ancient little wishing well that people tossed their coins in all the time in hopes that their wishes would come true. I laid my father to rest their so that he could be exactly where he wanted to be: at the heart of all the madness in Gotham. I gave him a front row seat to watch the world burn. The thought that every time a coin was tossed in and a wish was made, that the people were asking the Joker to fulfill the desires of their hearts, never failed to bring a smile to my face. How the old clown would laugh at the people who felt safe because they believed him to be dead, when in fact he was still right there with them.

Joe drove us to an old abandoned chemical plant, the sign reading _Ace Chemicals_. I followed him inside and saw three other teens playing a game of pool.

The Jokerz gang had started soon after the Joker's death. They were made up of nothing but copycat wannabe thugs who stole the Joker's name and motif to make themselves seem threatening when really, they were no different than any other crooks. Occasionally they would hit up a bank, but for the most part they stole purses and robbed convenience stores, petty crimes that would shame and disgust the Joker. Seeing their faces in the paper for such pathetic "crime" made me wish the Joker was still here just to see what he would do to them for trashing his image. But I needed henchmen, and though I could have used typical everyday thugs off the street, these guys were practically being served to me on a silver platter. One time I heard one of them was arrested just for slapping a cop and stealing and eating his donut, which had made my whole week, so they weren't all bad.

"I see you got us some fresh meat," said one of them, a guy in what appeared to be a phantom clown costume. I had to give him points for originality, but not many.

"Nice costume," said another, a girl dressed entirely in black, making her look like a ninja. No points for her. "Your face looks just like the Joker, that must be top of the line makeup you're using, real pricey stuff."

"On the contrary, I didn't have to pay a cent for it," I replied.

"What's your name?" asked the third, another guy. I couldn't tell what he was supposed to be, because his costume was very poorly constructed, or maybe he had done that on purpose. I gave him the most points of all of them.

"I've just been accepted into the club and we're already on a first name basis? I'm honored," I said as I bared my teeth in a wide grin.

"Ghost boy over there is Poltergeist, the lady is the Silhouette, and the other guy is Saber Tooth," Joe introduced.

"I'm the Marionette," I told them.

"Haven't I heard that name before?" said Silhouette as she tapped the side of her head. "Oh I know! You were on that show, the Joker's Circus! I loved that show! You won, even though no one thought you would."

"I was the underdog, huh?" I said. I didn't know that.

"But then that means you're… Holy crap," said Saber Tooth.

"You guessed it!" I said as I threw my arms in the air. They all stared at me with fear and wonder and respect in their eyes.

"So what brings you to our neck of the woods?" asked Poltergeist.

"Oh, nothing really. I'm just here to take over your little gang, is all," I said pleasantly.

The others opened their mouths to protest, but Joe held up a hand and said, "Rouge is no longer with us, we're under new management."

"I'll take it from here, Jolly," I told him, and he took a step back.

"What makes you think that just because you killed Rouge we'll do anything you say?" challenged Saber Tooth.

"Look at yourselves, you're all pathetic little worms riding on someone else's power and glory, stealing the name of the great Clown Prince of Crime to intimidate people when in reality you're not even worthy of having your keysters kicked by the Batman himself. None of you deserve the name of the Joker, all you've done is make a mockery of it. You have none of the Joker's style, brains, or humor. You have no idea what you're doing, you need someone like me to get your act together and show Gotham what you're made of. I have a plan for Gotham, a plan I'd like you all to be a part of. Everyone thinks things will get better now that the Joker is dead, but nothing could be farther from the truth. From now on, you're either with me, or against me, and I don't think I need to elaborate on what happens to people who aren't on my side. Actually, even the ones who are on my side aren't totally safe either, but their chances of survival are a bit higher with me. I am the Joker's daughter, his chosen heir. He was the spark that ignited the flames in Gotham, and I'm the fuel that will keep his fire burning. Choose your side now, and remember, once you've chosen, there's no going back. What's your answer? Are you with me?"

"I'm with you," said Jolly Joe with a broad grin.

"We're with you," said the others, quietly and tentatively.

"What was that, I didn't quite catch that," I said as I cupped my ear.

"We're with you!" they repeated, louder this time.

"Excellent! Now, you can't be the only Jokerz in Gotham, am I right? There's no way just the four of you and Rouge committed all the crimes and vandalism supposedly done by Jokerz."

"Yeah, there are tons of us, but we're split up into a bunch of separate groups," Joe explained.

"Wonderful, we'll get started immediately, we have little over a week to do this."

"Do what?" asked Silhouette.

"Round up the others for our performance, of course. Gotham knows me, or thinks it knows me, from the Joker's show, but I still need to make my big debut, and it can be nothing short of perfect and spectacular. Would you guys mind introducing me to your fellow comrades? Wouldn't want to leave anyone out and hurt their feelings, after all."

xxxx

Finding the other Jokerz proved to be a very time-consuming and migraine-inducing process, but for the most part each group handed over their power to me without struggle and pointed us in the direction of the next group after I'd killed their leaders. There was really only one guy who stood up to me and didn't give in to my threats, much like Rouge had. His name was Phoenix, and he had a vibrant, exotic costume to match. His gang was one of the larger ones, and therefore one of the more powerful ones. Of course I didn't need him, but I wasn't about to let him walk all over me. I had to maintain my reputation with my new recruits to ensure their respect and loyalty, plus I just didn't like being told no.

"Just because you're the product of a sick love affair between the Clown Prince and his wench does not give you the authority or power to control us," said Phoenix. How many times had I heard that argument?

"Of course not, but I'd say I have more right to the clown throne than you do," I pointed out.

"And how do we know you really are who you say you are? Sure, you look just like the Marionette, but she hasn't been seen since the Joker was murdered. A little makeup, some hair dye, and a good costume can make you look like anyone. You want to know what I think?" he asked as he got right up in my face. "I think the real Marionette was locked up in some cell in Arkham, and hasn't escaped because, despite the Joker's best efforts, she was a failure and completely lost her mind. What do you have to say to that?"

"I have been gone a while, but only to rest and prepare for Gotham's reckoning," I said as I held his gaze.

"More like hiding," he spat back. "Even if you really are who you say you are, you're incapable of leading this gang and will only succeed in bringing the Jokerz to ruin and becoming a stigma on the Joker's reputation and legacy."

I smiled and said, "Why don't you put your money where your mouth is? We'll have a duel to the death, whoever wins gains control over all the Jokerz. If I am truly as weak as you make me out to be, this should be no problem for one as great as yourself."

The Phoenix smirked and drew a sword from the sheath on his side and pointed it at me. "I accept."

I pulled out two of my knives (my weapons of choice, despite being out of the Joker's Circus) and drew near him. His smirk widened when he saw my knives, no doubt assuming that because his weapon was longer and stronger this would be an easy victory. Even if he did manage to win, no way would I make it _easy_.

We circled each other, I sized him up as he did the same to me. He made the first move by swiping his sword at me, cutting off a lock of hair but nothing else. He did this to scare me, and though it might have worked on anyone else it had no effect on me. I threw one of my knives at him and it lodged itself in his upper arm, and while he let out a growl of pain I leapt on his chest, ripped the knife out of his flesh, and did a flip over his back. He looked at me with an expression of bewilderment. When he looked at me he saw a young, helpless little girl without a clue as to what she was doing, he hadn't expected me to be an actual challenge, which gave me an advantage. He may have been bigger and stronger, but I was faster and more agile, not to mention the fact that I had inherited my father's insanity, which always came in handy in situations like this.

He clutched his shoulder in pain as he glared at me, readying himself to strike again. He would not be making the mistake of underestimating me again. He ran at me, and as he slashed at me with his sword I dropped and slid under his knees, leapt onto his back, and stuck my knife in his mouth.

"Would you like me to go ahead and kill you, or would you like to plead for your life first? Maybe you have some final words for your gang, or perhaps you wish to threaten me by telling me that I can't win?"

He surprised me by retaliating and throwing me off his back. He then took my knife from me, but before he could do anything with it, I took my other knife and drove the blade through his eye and into his brain, killing him almost instantly. I ripped the knife out of his eye-socket and carved a wide smile in his cheeks. I held him up by the back of his costume for the Jokerz to see and said, "Need you any more proof that I am who I say I am? The Joker chose me to continue on his legacy, and you shall be my minions. Together we will bring this city to its knees. It's about time we put a smile on the grim, stoic Dark Knight's ugly face. If any of you refuse, feel free to join the Phoenix here on the pile. Anyone want to back out? No? Well then, here's how this party's gonna go down…"


	27. Chapter 27

I decided to stay at my parent's last hideout, the abandoned toy factory, which really should be condemned. I was able to fit a lot of the Jokerz in there, but many of them had to stay in their old hideouts.

I had chosen two of the Jokerz to be my senior officers, Jolly Joe and a girl called Sirenia. The other Jokerz were out beginning preparations for the surprise party. Joe, Sirenia, and three girls who called themselves "the Fates," were accompanying me on a job I had to do before we could do anything else. Joe was driving while Sirenia rode shotgun and the Fates and I rode in the back. I was the only one keeping the conversation alive, the others were too nervous to contribute much, although Jolly Joe made a valiant effort. I could tell they'd never done anything like this before, they were more used to vandalism and petty theft. They weren't used to the big leagues, but I was changing that.

"We're here," Joe announced tentatively as he stopped the van outside a wire fence.

I looked out the window of the old van we had stolen and saw a big circus tent with the name, _Happi Jack's Wonder Carnival. _I threw open the door and jumped out and took in the old place.There were many other attractions and amusement rides, but one in the distance caught my attention for a moment, the funhouse. I wanted so badly to go inside that old funhouse for old time's sake, but I had to remind myself that I had a job to do.

"All rightey Powerpuff Girls, do your thing," I ordered the Fates. I didn't need to look to know that they didn't appreciate my joke, but they didn't hesitate to follow my orders and take out the guards protecting the fence. You'd think guards would be unnecessary at a carnival at night, but then again, I was about to prove their usefulness, or lack thereof.

"Stay here and keep watch for any caped pests, I won't be long," I told Joe and Sirenia.

I climbed over the fence and snuck inside the building beside the tent. It was only one story, and from what I'd heard, Happi Jack himself lived there. Inside, I found the big man, literally and figuratively, asleep at a desk in what I took to be his office. Tickets littered the floor and the walls had posters of his circus performers. He had the usual types of entertainers you would expect to see at a carnival, except clowns. He had performers who were similar to clowns, but ever since the Joker had disguised himself as one of his clowns and continuously fired people out of a cannon into the sky until Batman had shown up, Happi had refused to have any clowns in his show. Pity, really.

I tiptoed over to him, his mouth agape and drooling as he snored loudly enough to wake the dead, and gently shook him.

"Mr. Happi?" I said gently. He awoke with a start and looked around wildly, and let out a surprised yelp when he saw me.

"Who are you?" he asked groggily as he took in my garish appearance. "I don't hire no clowns."

"Oh, I'm not looking for a job, I apologize for the confusion. You see, I have a little surprise party planned for a friend of mine, I haven't seen him in ages and I just know he misses me as much as I miss him. I was wondering if you might have some party supplies around here somewhere I could borrow?"

He finally rid himself of his grogginess and realized who he was talking to. His face became whiter than mine as he breathed, "You're her, aren't you? _His_ daughter…"

"Yeah, so could you hurry up with the party favors? I'm kind of on a deadline, and I have no time to waste. Can't have this thing on just any old day, you know."

"What do you want from me, exactly?" he asked as a bead of sweat rolled down the side of his face.

"Oh you know, the floats you use in your annual parade, some of your fireworks, not the cheap kind, of course, the really big ones. Oh, and your animals too, the whole lot. My parents had some pet hyenas, but they were put down a while back after the raid on Arkham city. You wouldn't happen to have a spare hyena or two lying around, would you? "

"You really think I'm going to give you these things, just because you're the Joker's flesh and blood?" he said with a smirk. "Why don't you give me some incentive, if you know what I mean."

Unfortunately I did know what he meant, and so I realized I would have to take one for the team. Sighing inwardly, I came around his desk, accentuating every move slowly, and his lust-filled eyes followed me like a starved man being tempted with food. I came close to him and put my hands on his chest and undid the first three buttons on his greasy, sweaty t-shirt. I gazed deeply into his mud-brown eyes and whispered, "You gotta clown fetish or something, big guy?"

"Only when the clown is as gorgeous as you, doll-face," he replied as he licked his lips.

I closed my eyes and leaned in to kiss him, and just as our lips were about to meet, he let out a sharp cry of pain. I looked down, and saw my knife protruding from his stomach.

"Now how did that get in there?" I giggled as the desire disappeared from his eyes and was replaced with the fear from before. "Oh Mr. Happi, you don't look so good. Now, I've never been to medical school, but I think we both agree that I'm over-qualified in your case." I pulled the knife out of his stomach and, starting at the base of his neck and ending under his belly button, sliced the knife deep into his skin and cut deeply. He screamed as I pulled back the skin on either side with my bare hands.

"Tsk, tsk, your insides look positively dreadful, I'm afraid everything will have to go!" I pulled out his organs one by one, and then replaced them with whatever objects I found lying around his office. A bronze plaque for his heart, a clock for his stomach, and a paperweight for his liver. I found a large amount of cash in one of the drawers, and shoved them inside his chest behind his ribcage where his lungs used to be.

"I want you to feel better soon and I don't want you worrying about anyone taking your stuff while you're recuperating, so I put your favorite thing where no one will ever dare try to take it," I laughed as I began stitching him back up. He was already dead, but I never let that stop me.

As soon as I was done, I radioed out to Joe and said, "We're good to go. Round up the others and bring them in. We have little over a week to get this done, and if you don't get this done in time I'll mail your severed head and limbs to the Bat with a shiny red bow on top, got it?"

"Yes sir! Roger that!" said Joe.

"Pleasure doing business with you, Mr. Happi," I said as I shook his hand, our hands both soaked in his blood.

xxxx

About a week later, Joe came to deliver a message to me while I was playing Hangman with some of my henchmen in my favorite room in the whole hideout. I had discovered this room a few days previous, and given all the cool toys in there, it could only have been the Joker's playroom before it became my playroom.

"A-Are th-there any l-letter R's?" asked one of them, the Poltergeist.

"Oh, sorry Caspar, no R's," I said as I pushed his button and the floor gave way beneath him. He let out a cry that was quickly cut off as the rope around his neck snapped his neck. The few remaining henches flinched visibly, looking down at their own ropes and at the blackboard, trying desperately to solve the puzzle.

"Everything's ready, and the other Jokerz are set and ready to go, Marionette. Everything's in place just as you requested, Boss."

"Wonderful! My Robin will be so surprised! And everyone else in Gotham will get party favors, everyone wins!" I said as I threw my chalk into the air and caught it in my other hand. "Since I'm in a particularly good mood right now, I'll solve the puzzle for you guys, okay?"

They all let out a collective sigh of relief as I filled in the empty spaces. "The answer is Anatidaephobia, the fear that somehow, somewhere, a duck is watching you. The way I see it, if all you have to fear are ducks, you live a pretty decent life."

As my henches began to remove the ropes around their necks, I pulled a lever and the entire floor beneath them gave way, sending them all on a short drop and a sudden stop. At the looks on their faces as they died, I said, "Hey, I solved the puzzle, that I means I win and you lose. You always have to play by the rules, even if you came up with them and they make about as much sense as the platypus. Seriously, that animal is proof that God has a sense of humor."

I had been playing the game to distract myself, but now that it was over I was faced with the problem that had been nagging at me for some time now. I looked to Jolly and asked him, "What if he doesn't show? What will I do then?" I didn't want to even think it, but the possibility was staring me right in the face.

Jolly replied, "I don't know, but if he doesn't, then that means he was never worthy of being your arch-foe in the first place."

I couldn't help but smile at that, and felt my spirits lift a bit. "Come on," I said to him. "Let's go hit up that new ice cream parlor, I could kill for a sundae right about now."

**~Robin's POV~**

"Tim, won't you please talk to me?"

"I've told you everything, there's nothing left to say."

I was in therapy with Dr. Matthews, a woman who had studied under Dr. Thompkins and who Bruce trusted enough to reveal his secret identity, and mine, not that he'd had much choice. She had been treating me for a year now, and though she insisted that we had made great progress, I felt as broken and hopeless as I had on day one.

Even though I was sane, or at least no longer a homicidal maniac, I still felt dangerously close to the edge, like a good shove was all it would take to send me falling again. What really bothered me though was how, if I was being perfectly honest with myself, part of me wanted that to happen. I had tasted madness, and despite the horrible pain it brought with it, there was a little corner of my mind that yearned for the supposed freedom it brought with it. Madness was like a drug, and once you had experienced it you could never be completely free of it, there was always some inside you, how much depended on how much you indulged it, I had learned. It made me understand better why the rogues, no matter how hard they might try to start fresh, never resisted the pull for very long.

"Tim, I can't help you if you won't let me help you. You've come so far, yet you still refuse to let yourself recover."

"You think I want to be like this?" I snapped at her.

"No, but you aren't letting yourself heal. You've forgotten what it is to be whole, and you fear it."

"I'm not afraid of anything," I said defensively.

"You need something to help you out of this rut, you need purpose, drive," she said as she looked at me, her eyes full of compassion, not pity, but empathy. "You need something to live for, Tim."

"I'm not suicidal, either."

"That's not what I meant. You've lost your way, and you need something to help you find your way back. People who experience mental breakdowns can't fully heal unless they find something good to replace the bad, otherwise they'll always relapse. What that thing is, I have no idea. But you'll know it when you find it."

"That doesn't help me much, but thanks anyway, doc," I said as I stood and opened the door to leave.

"If you need anything or want to talk some more, call me, okay?" she said kindly as she took off her glasses.

"Sure," I said, having no intention of doing so. She had been a big help, but I preferred to solve my problems on my own. As I left her office I caught sight of my reflection in the mirror, and though I tried to avoid mirrors as much as possible, they always seemed to find me. I was ashamed of my appearance, because of the scars on my cheeks. Bruce had found a doctor who was willing to remove the smile the Joker had given me without revealing my identity to the media or the mob for a quick buck. Though my face was no longer frozen in a rictus grin, the doctor had been unable to undo the damage completely, and so I still had two scars in my cheeks. They weren't nearly as ugly and horrible as the grin had been, but they tugged at my mouth just enough to make me look like I was always in a good mood, regardless of how I truly felt. Even worse than that though, their existence was a constant, painful reminder of what I had been, of what I had become.

As I left her office and headed for my car I got a call on my cell. I checked the ID, it was Violet.

"Drake," I said as I answered the phone.

"You need to get back here right now, it's urgent," said Violet.

"What's going on?" I asked.

"She's back."

Those two words were all I needed to hear. I hung up the phone and raced home as fast as I could. We had been waiting for her to pop up, and I wondered what she had in store for us.

Back at the Batcave, I found Bruce and Violet staring intently at the batcomputer. Violet was in Barbara's old Batgirl costume. They had become very close, and Barbara had insisted that she take her place as Batgirl. Violet had tried to decline out of respect and lack of confidence in her abilities, but Barbara had said, "You really want to leave the fate of Gotham in the hands of the men?" Violet was honored and humbled to wear Barbara's mask, and after a lot of physical training with Bruce and Dick, she had become a force to be reckoned with.

"What's going on? What's she doing?" I asked as I joined them.

"See for yourself," said Bruce without looking at me, using his cane for support.

I looked at the monitor and saw downtown Gotham, and saw huge parade. Costumed performers danced and did tricks for the crowd that had formed around them as carnival music blared and confetti and streamers fell around them. There were seven floats, each decorated in a circus fashion. The people watching didn't know what to make of the spectacle, some seemed suspicious while others cheered and joined in the fun. Children fought each other to get a better look while people laughed and pointed at the performers. At the end of the procession was the Marionette herself, and I realized the performers were Jokerz in disguise. She was twirling around like a ballerina, smiling and waving and blowing kisses to the crowd. Of the people she touched, some became even more excited while some seemed unnerved by her appearance. Her eyes were lit up with a dangerous fervor and excitement.

"I'm going down there to help Dick," said Violet as she turned to go, but as she did the scene before us changed significantly and she turned back to look.

Rose ended her unique dancing and leapt onto the parade float before her, which was decorated to resemble a gigantic clown face. The parade came to a standstill and the music ended, and the crowd watched with curiosity.

"Good evening, Gotham! Did you miss me? I missed all of you ever so much," said Rose through a microphone as she gazed down at all of them. "Tonight is a very special night, a night to remember the greatest man Gotham has ever known. A man who, though dead, is not dead and gone: the Joker! Tonight I'd like to introduce you all to his merry little puppet, who he entrusted to put a smile on your faces in his stead: me! But not just that, there's been a terrible wrong committed in our fair city, a wrong that I intend to right. You see, a year ago today the Bat killed the Clown, and in his shame ran away and hid like a child and appointed a successor of his own to take his place, but he chose the wrong one. I'm looking for Robin, the third one to be precise. No one's seen hide or hair of him since he was last seen playing the Joker's game in Arkham city. I know you're out there Robin, I know how bashful you are, so I threw this party for you to coax you into leaving the Batcave so we can talk like civilized folk. And no party is complete without party favors!"

One of the Jokerz handed her a small device with two blinking buttons as the rest of them put on gas masks. She pressed the button on top, which caused several fireworks to explode into the air, each one releasing Joker venom in a powder form to fall from the sky. The people tried to run, but were poisoned by the toxin, which caused them to start laughing uncontrollably and collapse to the ground. I had seen the effects of this particular version of the toxin enough times to know that it was the lethal version, and watched in horror and dismay as the hundreds of people in the crowd laughed themselves to death.

"I know, I know, the laughing toxin was Joker's thing, but I just couldn't help myself," giggled Rose as she watched them die below her, somehow unaffected by the toxin herself despite her lack of protection. She must have inherited her parent's immunity, I realized. "After all, I bet after the Joker died you thought you wouldn't have to worry about dying of laughter anymore, right? Kind of symbolic really. Don't think that just because the Joker's not with us anymore that the fun is going to stop! The party's only just begun!"

She then pressed the second button on the remote and the float began to rise. I realized that it wasn't a parade float at all, but a hot air balloon disguised as a float. As it rose high into the air, Rose announced, "I'll be right here, Bird Boy! Don't keep me waiting!" she said in a sing-song voice.

"What are you going to do, Tim?" asked Bruce solemnly.

"I can't do anything Bruce, can't you see? I want to go out there, I want to help them, but though I would do good today, I fear what I would become in the long run. The road to hell is paved with good intentions. I'm not fit or worthy to take her on," I said as hating myself for being too weak to do anyone any good.

"Tim, the fact that the Joker was able to break you means you're human. No one could have come out of that unscathed. You have a soul, it wasn't taken from you, you just lost your way. It scares me to admit it, but had I been in your position, I fear I would have given in before you did," Bruce admitted.

"No you wouldn't have," I argued. "You resisted for decades, you didn't give in even when he killed Jason and paralyzed Barbara, or took me. You're the picture of iron will, he never would have gotten to you."

A smile flickered briefly on his face, then he said, "I became Batman to hold onto my sanity. Ever since I lost my parents that night, the darkness and shadows have always threatened to consume me, it's taken everything in me to not succumb. Maybe I wouldn't have given in, but I know myself well enough to know that I probably would have. But the point is, is that just because the Joker knocked you down, doesn't mean you can't pick yourself up again and move on. Take Violet for example. She literally had nothing, she had everything in her life taken from her, yet she has chosen to rebuild her life. She'll never be whole, but then again no one really is. We have to take the pieces we have and do our best with them to survive, and to live our lives the way they were meant to be lived."

I thought of Violet, and how far she had come. She had joined a support group for kidnap victims, and they all looked up to her and admired her for her courage, even though she told me she didn't feel brave at all. She was attending school, and wanted to go on to become a doctor, and I couldn't think of anyone more qualified. She was happier than she had ever been, but she was still troubled by her past, and had nightmares nearly every night, as did I. Even though she was living with Barbara, every so often she would take a taxi to Wayne Manor and sneak into my bed. Our clothes always stayed on, but the comfort of each other's presence soothed us so that we could sleep in peace. Violet had become my best friend, and yet I almost envied her for the progress she had made, even though I knew how silly that was.

Just then, Helena once again found her way into the Batcave, even though she had been told time and time again that it was forbidden. The tiny five year old had her father wrapped around her little finger, and so actual punishment for her disobedience was unlikely to ever happen.

"Helena, you know you're not supposed to come down here," Bruce scolded half-heartedly as she jumped into his lap.

"But the evil dragon kidnapped the princess again, you have to save her Daddy!" she cried.

"I will, I will," Bruce promised.

"Guess what? I caught another dog outside, but Mommy said I couldn't keep him," she pouted, apparently having forgotten about the princess and the dragon.

"You're quite the little huntress," said Bruce as he gently tousled her dark hair. "Run along now, Tim and I need to talk."

"Okay Daddy. Bye Tim!" she said as she made to leave. But before she did, a feed from the news appeared on screen with a mugshot of the Joker.

"Who's that, Daddy?" asked Helena curiously.

"No one you need to worry about anymore, Sweetheart," said Bruce quietly. After she had left, Bruce said, "Seeing Marionette doing these things, it makes me think of Helena. She and Selena are my whole world, and despite all he did, sometimes I just can't believe the Joker would stoop so low as to drive his own daughter insane. The Joker orchestrated the birth of his children, he planned from day one that he would make Rose like him, by force if necessary, and he risked her life multiple times over. Yet, by his standards, he was actually a good father to her."

"You're kidding, right?" I asked incredulously.

"I wish I was. Knowing the Joker, I would have expected him to raise the child himself and brainwash it into being like him, but he did just the opposite. He gave her away so that she could shape her own worldview, he allowed her to become an individual, and in that time only interfered once to save her life. He actually saved her life three times, and for him that's unheard of. Not only that, but he made sure she was taken care of, he didn't leave her out there completely on her own. Mother Leela told me that the doctor who was supposed to deliver them, Erin Farnsworth, tried to let them die because she was afraid they'd grow up to be like him. I understand why she did it, but it wasn't her place to try to murder those children and Harley. Still, her punishment was worse than she deserved. Joker forced her to leave her job, her family, and her life behind to care for his daughter in the orphanage as a nun. He forced her to raise his own child instead of her own daughter and threatened to kill her child if Rose was ever hurt or killed, and it caused her to more or less lose her mind. He told them Rose was never to be adopted, and was to stay with them until the day she turned sixteen, and that they were to care for her and protect her until then. He had a couple of his henchmen pose as janitors to watch and make sure that Rose was taken care of, though they didn't know why they were doing it. According to Mother Leela, the Joker even disguised himself as a janitor a couple of times to keep an eye on her.

"I actually could have stopped all this, could have helped Erin and Rose, but I didn't realize I had missed my chance until years later," said Bruce quietly, his face full of regret. "After the birth, I was afraid the Joker would blame Erin, as he had already killed the orderly assisting. I went to her house to talk to her and she seemed on edge, but swore that he hadn't threatened her in anyway and that she believed she was safe. Something seemed off about her, but I couldn't put my finger on it. She was holding her baby daughter as she spoke to me, but as I was leaving, I heard another baby cry, one that wasn't coming from the baby in her arms. I thought it was strange but didn't look into it, but now I see that that other baby was Rose. It was stupid and careless, who would think that one tiny mistake as that would cost so many lives? But it did, and it was my fault."

"You couldn't have known," I said to him, but he shook his head.

"Stupid and careless. After Erin left, her husband and daughter never even knew what had happened to her, the Joker wouldn't let her explain, and so everyone assumed she had run away. When Rose was seven she was nearly killed by a couple who had lost money, their family, everything to the Joker, and so when they saw Rose as her true self they lost it and tried to kill her. As punishment and warning, he cut off the hand of her daughter and gave it to her, and after Rose turned sixteen and left the orphanage, he finally killed Erin's family and then her," he said grimly.

"He even made her pills to temporarily alter her appearance so she could blend in and appear normal. Her life was far from ideal, but at least in that time she had some semblance of free will. It goes against everything in the Joker's character, but then again he never really had a character of his own. He made himself anew every day to adapt to whatever situation he was in, and I suppose for the last eighteen years of his life he integrated a bit of parenting in. It's crazy, but he was a better father to Rose than a lot of fathers out there."

"You think she could have been normal? If the circumstances had been different?" I asked.

"Every person in the world is influenced by a unique set of genes and experiences. I think Rose was always a bit off balance, but the events in her life ultimately shaped her. The mind is programmed to do whatever it has to do to protect itself. When too much stress is put on the mind, it adapts to deal with the stress. Most of the time the mind doesn't have to do much to protect itself, but when overwhelming amounts of stress are put on it, whether it be from pressure, fear, or abuse, it can become drastically altered. Some cases of mental illness, not all, are the mind's desperate attempt to shield itself; it can't feel the effects of the stress in its maddened state because it has disconnected itself from reality. But even though it's trying to protect itself, the mental illness generally does more harm to the body than the effects of stress. This is what happened with you, Tim. You needed to escape, so your mind caused you to escape in the only way it could, by succumbing to the Joker's torture and allowing him to reshape your mind to cope, to survive. I believe the Joker is a great example, though I'll never know for sure what caused him to become that way, and so is Rose. She could have become a protector, a keeper of the justice like us, but she chose to become like her father. Now it's your turn to choose."

"Bruce-" I started, but he cut me off.

"With his final act of cruelty, the Joker turned Gotham on its head, more than he ever had before. Many people in Gotham don't believe in what we represent: honor, justice, goodness and decency. They've gone through so much here, and many don't believe that those things can exist here, and so they don't trust us. They want us to help them, but at the same time, they're suspicious of our motives, they were just waiting for something like that to happen. They despise the Joker as much as ever, but without them even realizing it, he's become a martyr in their eyes. They hate Batman and all vigilantes, and are more likely to accept the Marionette despite the fact that she's his daughter and has murdered so many of them. It's never been safe for us out there, but with the police after us and without Gordon to lead them off our trail, the likelihood of one of us being shot by an officer has never been higher."

There was no doubt about that. Gordon had died in his sleep a few months ago, and had been replaced by a brute who targeted every vigilante as though each one had offended him personally. Most of the old rogues gallery were either dead, retired, or in no shape to fight, but with friends like these, who needs enemies?

"Why do we fall, Tim?" Bruce asked suddenly.

"So we can learn to pick ourselves up again," I replied quietly. He had asked me that question before, the same one his father had once asked him before he died. I bet his dad hadn't had this in mind when he was sharing that bit of wisdom with his son.

"The Joker destroyed the image of the Batman, he created great discord and chaos, and he created an heir in his image to keep his madness alive in this city. This is exactly what he wanted to happen, every detail is coming to fruition just as he planned it," he said bitterly. He looked up at me and said, "When I took you in and made you Robin, it was so that you wouldn't become like me. I failed you, and despite my best efforts, you bear a similar burden to mine. You know that I trust you to keep fighting, but I would never force this on you, not even if the world was falling apart and you were the only one who could save it, because no one should have to carry this burden. I wouldn't wish such a life on my worst enemy. But this city needs you, and I think you need this, too. You need to prove to yourself that you're stronger than the Joker was, and that you won't let him dominate your life. This isn't what he had in mind when he tortured you, but I don't think he would mind how things turned out, as harsh as it may sound. Fighting for Gotham isn't the solution to all your problems, but right now this city needs you, Robin. You don't know how badly I want to be out there, to fight for my people but physically unable to. It takes a great man to admit it when he falls, but for right now you must pick yourself back up again to defend the people you swore to protect. You need to do this Robin, maybe not permanently, but for one day at least, help those that need you."

"I don't think I can," I said as I lowered my gaze, unable to meet his eyes. I couldn't risk hurting anyone else, but they all needed me. I felt very conflicted, I was at war with myself, until I saw something on the monitor that finally snapped me out of it.

The news helicopters were picking up footage of Dick fighting Rose in her hot air balloon, with Violet facing off with two of the Jokerz.

"One of these things is not like the others," said Rose in a sing-song voice as she kicked Dick in the stomach. "One of these things doesn't belong. Can you tell which thing doesn't belong by the time I finish my song? If you guessed the man in the batsuit before me, then you're absolutely right!"

Dick punched her in the side of her face, causing her to stumble to the floor. While she was there, she picked up a lead pipe and said, "You really should have stayed in Blüdhaven, Nightwing."

She swung it at his head, making a horrible sound as the metal connected with skin and bone. Nightwing fell to the floor, his temple bleeding but still conscious. Rose, still holding onto the pipe, jumped on his chest and forced his mouth open as he tried to pick himself back up. Violet took out the two Jokerz she had been fighting, but four more suddenly appeared and, on Rose's orders, grabbed her arms and held her back.

"Wouldn't want you to miss the show, now would we? If you don't see it now the internet will spoil it for you," she chuckled as she began sliding the pipe into Dick's mouth. It wasn't easy for her, but it was just slender enough to squeeze down his throat. He made awful retching and gagging sounds as he tried to fight her off, but the more he struggled the harder she pushed.

"Dick, no!" I shouted, as though he could hear me.

He convulsed and tried to gasp for air but his entire airway was blocked and he didn't have the strength to fight back. Rose held out her hand and one of the Jokerz handed her a hammer, and she raised it high and slammed it down on the pipe, driving it so far down's Dick's throat that it was no longer visible. Blood spurted out of his mouth and nose as his body convulsed, then became still.

"What have you done! You horrible, evil witch!" screamed Violet as tears ran down her mask and face.

"I'm running out patience, Boy Blunder," said Rose as she stood up from Dick's body and examined her nails as though she hadn't just murdered the Batman, like it was the most inconsequential thing in the world. "You'd think that wiping out a fraction of people and his buddy would draw him out of hiding, but it looks like the Cowardly Lion could use a little courage. How about this, old chum. If you're not here in five minutes, I do to Batgirl what I just did to imposter-bat here. If you still won't come after that, then I guess my father really did get to you, didn't he? I thought you were a robin, not a chicken."

It was then that I knew what I had to do. No more hiding, no more fear. I had been selfish and foolish, and people were dying because of it, because of me. Dick was dead because of my fear and inaction, but no more, I would make it up to him by making sure Rose was locked away where she could never hurt anyone ever again. No more pity-parties, no more letting the Joker dominate my life. He had broken me, but that didn't mean I couldn't be salvaged and restored, I was finally realizing.

"Thanks Bruce," I said as I turned to him.

"You have no reason to thank me. I didn't tell you anything you didn't already know. Now go," said Bruce, and I saw his eyes mist over. He had just lost another Robin. He might lose another tonight.

I raced off and hopped in the bat-copter and fired it up. I was determined to rectify my mistakes, I just hoped I wasn't too late.


	28. Chapter 28

**~Marionette and Robin ~**

"Well how do you like that? I go to the trouble of throwing someone a surprise party and they can't even be bothered to show up. I even bought a cake for him," the Marionette ranted. Sirenia and Jolly Joe stood nervously off to the side as she paced back and forth. The four other Jokerz in the blimp held onto Batgirl tightly, anticipating her to try to escape while secretly hoping that their boss wouldn't target any of them in her anger and disappointment.

The Marionette was beginning to grow worried, a feeling she had become unaccustomed to, and so it irritated her. Where was Robin? He was ruining everything.

Maybe Bruce really had locked him up, and she would be left waiting forever. Or maybe he didn't think her worthy of fighting, of being his archenemy. The thought angered her, how could anyone think her unworthy? Had she not already proven herself to the world, to him? If he didn't show soon, Gotham would go up in a mushroom cloud, with him and her with it. He would pay for his rejection of her, but she decided to give him just a bit longer. After all, time meant nothing to her, and so she had all the time in the world to wait for her hero.

"Please Rose, stop this now. We can help you, if you'll let us. Can't you see what you're doing? No one else needs to die tonight," Violet pleaded. She knew that she could not be reasoned with, but she hoped to keep her distracted until she could free herself and take her down.

Marionette stopped pacing and walked up to her and smacked her across the cheek. She bent down to her level and said, "Let's get one thing straight, okay Pumpkin? I don't go by that name anymore. Rose was a lie, she never existed at all. She was a mask I thought was real for most of my life, this is the real me."

She made herself calm down and then said as a smile stretched across her face, "What does it take to attract the attention of a songbird, hmm? Who do I have to kill to get him to get off his lazy rear and get down here? He must not care as much as he used to claim to if hundreds dead doesn't motivate him. Maybe he never recovered from my dad's tutelage, perhaps murder isn't the way to go, after all," she mused to herself. "What do you think, _Mime_?"

"Just as you no longer go by the name Rose, I don't go by the name Mime anymore, either. I have a voice, and I won't let people like you hurt others, like I was hurt," she said as she fiercely held her gaze. "And why do you want Robin so badly, anyway?"

"Nightwing wasn't up to the job, I put the old Bat out of commission, Stupidman is overrated, and you're just not very fun. I want to see what he's been up to in the past year, last time I saw him he was raving about killing the Joker, and likely would have killed a bunch of other people as well despite believing that he was above that. He's cute when he acts like a depraved lunatic."

"He's not like that anymore. We were able to undo what your father did to him," said Violet.

"Is that so? What'd you do, lobotomize him?"

"It doesn't matter, because he will stop you," said Violet without a hint of doubt.

"But he won't kill me, just like Batman refused to ever kill my father. It's true what they say, history does repeat itself. I swear, Gotham just can't catch a break. But I'm through talking with you, you're a terrible conversationalist, Mimey. Jolly Joe," She said as she pointed to him. She tossed him a camcorder and said, "I want you to film this, in case the Boy Blunder decides not to show. He'll probably see it on the news anyway, but this is to ensure that he sees this for all its glory."

He turned on the camera and began filming as she went over to Violet. Marionette grabbed her by her chin and forced her to look at her as she stuck a knife in her mouth, the same one the Joker had given her in the game.

"I love a smiling face, don't you? People always look their best when they smile, and there's even a theory that says smiling makes you feel happier, so I see no reason for anyone to ever frown. But most people spend all their time in a state of perpetual doom and gloom and almost never crack a smile, and so instead of giving you a lovely grin, I'm going to give you a nice, big frown so that when people look at you, they'll be reminded just how important a nice, big smile is!"

As she was about to cut through her left cheek, a batarang suddenly knocked the knife out of her hand. She looked up and, low and behold, there was Robin in the batplane.

"Finally, a welcome face! Are you always so fashionably late?" she greeted him with a wave as he leaped into the blimp. She felt her spirit soar with happiness and excitement as he roughly knocked her to the floor, making her see stars. She didn't even care when Batgirl took out her captors, leaving her without any henchmen and therefore no monkeys on the blimp to do her bidding or protect her, all that mattered was that Robin was here, he was finally here! He still cared enough to take the time to try to put an end to her party, they could finally begin the game, the same endless game their fathers had played before them.

The two young vigilantes began moving in on her, but before either of them could make a move to subdue her, she grabbed the knife off the ground where it had landed and pounced on Violet and stuck the knife into her mouth as she said to him, "Before we begin, you'll need to put on your Sunday best. I'm afraid you'll have to borrow it from Nightwing, though."

Robin looked at her in disbelief. Was she really asking him to strip Dick's corpse and wear the batsuit? No, she was demanding it. "Let her go," he said, ignoring her request.

Marionette pulled Violet over to the edge of the blimp and held her out by her wrist, ready to release her at any moment. Violet shook her head; she couldn't free herself without the Marionette killing her, and she would rather she let her fall than have Dick's body desecrated in such a way. "I'd be happy to," Marionette said with a merciless grin. "Unless you'd be willing to change into something a little more comfortable. Don't worry, Batgirl and I won't look."

Having no other choice, Tim went over to Dick's body and silently undressed him, his rage seething as he pictured in his mind what all he wanted to do to her to make her pay. Humiliated, he took off his own clothes and tried to cover himself as best he could as he switched clothes with Dick. He moved away from the opening of the blimp and hoped beyond hope that he was out of the view of the news helicopters circling the blimp, along with the police helicopters, no less. Violet squeezed her eyes shut to give him some privacy while Marionette peeked beneath her eyelids with a pleased grin.

Because Bruce and Dick were both more muscular and bigger than him, the batsuit was a bit too loose, but at least it wasn't falling off of him. He had imagined wearing the batcowl many times before, but had never imagined it would happen like this. He tried to cover Dick's now naked corpse as best as he could with his own suit and sent him a silent apology, and put his own mask on his face to keep his identity a secret, even though it was no longer necessary for his protection. He was disgusted with himself for what he had had to do, but he had to do it for Violet.

"Now, was that so hard?" asked Marionette as she slammed Violet's head against the wall and let her fall to the floor, knocking her out cold. "And here I thought you were still the crazed ex-hero you were at our last meeting, but here you are, you've graduated. You're not some dopey sidekick anymore, now you're the real deal, a hero worthy of myself. You're the new Batman, now it's time for the real fun to begin!"

The Marionette jumped out of the blimp, laughing raucously, and Robin ran to the edge and, against his instincts, leaped after her and caught her before she could hit the pavement. He then fired his grappling hook, which wrapped itself around one of the police helicopters, and pulled them both up. Once up there, Marionette escaped his hold and tossed out the pilot before he could stop her. He flipped on the autopilot and grabbed her and dragged her to the back of the helicopter where she couldn't do anymore damage as she continued to giggle dementedly.

Enraged at all she had done, he punched her in the nose, and felt and heard a sickening crack as blood gushed forth, but all she did was continue laughing, as though the pain felt good to her. All this did was make him angrier, why did she have to be so much like the Joker? He held her tightly by the neck and raised her off the ground, and though she had to gasp for breath, she still managed to laugh, as much as she was capable of anyway.

"Is this the part where I'm supposed to beg you to let me go and plead for my life?" she gasped. "Got to give you points, anyone else would be crying and wetting their pants at the sight of you right now, you do retro-Bat proud. I like the scars, by the way. The Glasgow smile was cool too, but the scars suit you much better, hotstuff. You're always smiling, even now that Nightwing has left us. Oops, too soon?"

"This ends now, Rose," he ordered through gritted teeth, his anger barely contained.

Marionette looked around and said, "Rose? Who's she? As far as I know, I don't have anyone by that name employed here. You must have her confused with someone else."

"Don't play dumb, Rose," he said darkly. "I won't play your game."

"Do I look like Rose to you? Rose, the façade I lived as, died a year ago today. All that's left is the Marionette, although I don't mind Snow."

To keep her from suffocating in his grip, he lowered her to the ground and loosened his grip on her, but he did not let go.

She looked out the window and then back to him and said, "Care to dance with the devil in the pale moonlight?"

Without waiting for a reply, the Marionette put her arms around his neck and moved to a strange tune that she hummed even as he still gripped her neck. Tim found himself, for reasons he didn't quite understand, moving with her. He released her neck and put his hands on her hips and they moved slowly in a circle in the light of the full moon.

"Just think," she said quietly, her voice less crazed than before as they moved together, their bodies in perfect sync. "In another life, me and you could be together without a care in the world. No vigilantism, no terrorizing the city, just you and me spending every Friday night together like other dumb teenagers."

"Is that what you want?" he asked her, wondering what such a life would be like. He couldn't imagine a world in which he lived a normal life, let alone a life in which he and Rose weren't at each other's throats, but boyfriend and girlfriend.

"No, what kind of question is that?" she asked him, that insane edge back in her tone, as though she couldn't believe he would ever think such a thing as that. "Who would want to be ordinary when you can be extraordinary? Sure it sounds nice, but a life in which you repeat the same menial tasks over and over, telling yourself all the while that your life has purpose and meaning when on some level you know it doesn't? How boring. I just meant that it's kind of funny to think about what could have been, if the fates had chosen different."

Tim ended the dance and, still holding her in his arms, stared her dead in the face. Who was this woman, that she could hypnotize and mesmerize him like this? She represented every temptation in his life, the evil he grappled with on a day-to-day basis. He hated her, hated her for what she was and what she had done. She was the daughter of the Joker, a man he had loathed more than he'd believed he was capable. She could no longer be defined by the actions of her father, not after everything she had done. She had murdered hundreds in just one night. She had murdered Dick, all for doing his job by protecting the people. She had played a major role in carrying out the Joker's final act of cruelty, by helping to tarnish and destroy the Batman's reputation in the eyes of the people. How much more would she do in her lifetime, how much more pain would she deal out, how many more lives would she steal, all for the fun of it, and to keep her father's twisted legacy alive?

But even though he despised her, he couldn't deny that there was something about her that he was drawn to, something within her that part of him wanted very badly. He wasn't sure how big that part of him was, he couldn't understand those feelings and refused to entertain them, but he couldn't deny their existence.

Another part of him told him that he should kill her, that it would be for the greater good and that he would not only be saving countless lives, but herself as well. But he would never do that, because he promised himself that he would never go down that road again, he would never cross that line and become that which he so despised ever again. But not only that, he wouldn't kill her because he pitied her, he truly believed there was a chance she could be saved, but that she was unwilling to ever try to be cured. She had been normal once, or about as close to normal as you could be in her place. Her mind had been warped by a combination of genetics and the experiences of her life, but in the end she had made the choice to become this. Perhaps this fate had been inevitable, perhaps she would have turned out this way no matter what path her life had taken, but he couldn't give up on her, not without a fight. Bruce refused to believe that people were beyond saving, and so he had always tried to help them live better lives. He would do the same.

Tim reached into a pocket and Marionette readied herself for some kind of bat-themed weapon, but instead he pulled out a photograph. He had taken the photo after she had disappeared and had held onto it for her, for this moment.

"I want you to have this," he said as he handed it to her. She stepped away from him and looked at it and saw that it was a picture of her, of the person she had once been.

"You got this from my Arkham file, didn't you? It's official, respect of personal space is dead," she sighed. She couldn't help but stare at it, at her blonde hair and light skin. The face that she had believed was hers, but never had been. Looking at the photo, it was like the face was laughing at her, laughing because it represented something she could never have, a normal existence. Why did it bother her so? The last thing she wanted was to look like the rest, to be just another sheep in a mass of undefined nobodies. But it stirred up anger and despair within her nonetheless, she couldn't stand to look at it any longer, and she had been about to rip it to shreds when he stopped her.

"Don't," he said as he put a dark-gloved hand on her bone-white one. "I want you to keep it, even though I know you don't want to. I want you to keep it as a reminder, a reminder that there is a life out there for you, you don't have to be one of the Joker's victims anymore. A reminder that you can find your way back, if you'll just let us help you."

"I'm not one of his victims, I'm his weapon," she said as she tore the photo in two and tossed it over her shoulder, relieved to be rid of it. "It's not like I have the pills anymore anyway, without them I stand as much chance of fitting in as one normal person would in a crowd of freaks. Besides, I don't mind, it's an honor really, to be tasked with something as huge as this. I was afraid this night would a flop, a disaster, because even though I've spent a year planning it, let's face it, these things never turn out as good as they do in your head, you know? But all in all, I'd say tonight has been a success. Daddy would be proud of me, don't you think? Not that I care much for his approval, but it would be kind of nice to have now and again."

"You're more than just his weapon," Tim said to her quietly. "You're a thinking, feeling human being, you don't have to live this way. I know you think that you want to, but on some level, you must understand how wrong this is. You must want something better for yourself, a husband, children, a successful career and friends, a life free of the insanity and chaos your father brought on you. We can help get you treatment for your condition to give you a more normal appearance, you don't have to look like him any longer." As he spoke, she turned away from him with her arms crossed. "This path leads to a dead end, filled with nothing but unforgiving cell walls, straight-jackets and needles and shock treatments. The people will hate and fear you, and you're likely to end up dead in a shootout before you turn twenty. If you don't come back soon, there may come a day when you want to come back, but are unable to. Please Rose, come back with me to Arkham, at least try to be cured. I want to help you, despite the things you've done. I'm willing to give you another chance, if you'll only accept it."

"I think I'd like to try out the shock treatments, they sound so relaxing." The Marionette slowly turned back to face him, her face unreadable. "I appreciate your concern, but it's too late for me. Far too late. Your offer is tempting, but to give up the white skin and green hair would be to get rid of part of myself. I suppose most people, were they in my place, would want their old skin back because they find comfort in what's familiar. A new skin, whether it be beautiful or hideous, would feel wrong to them, every time they looked in the mirror it would be like looking at a stranger. My old skin wasn't real, for the first time in my life I'm happy with who I am, and to go back would be like living someone else's life, one that wasn't meant for me. Most people wouldn't think of this as the ideal lifestyle, but they just can't understand how backwards they have it. They're like sheep headed to the slaughter, they can't see how imprisoned they are. They trap themselves with sweet illusions of abstract concepts of decency and morality, burdening themselves with the ideas of children. I alone am free, like my father and mother before me."

She smiled a small, sad smile as she said, "You knew this freedom once too. You must miss it so, though you would never admit to it. I can't decide how I like you better, as a raving lunatic or as the grim, stoic dark knight, more than man, as close to immortal as any man can ever come. It's why I don't kill you, even though I want it so terribly."

The Marionette felt like she would be throwing away a favorite toy if she killed him, one that she wasn't done playing with just yet. For some reason he seemed different than other people, he seemed to stand out in a way that no one else did, it was like they were the only real people in the entire world and everyone else was just imaginary friends that weren't really there. They were like animals, she thought, their lives held no value whatsoever. She could kill any of them without a second thought, but Tim, the real and true Batman in her eyes, was the only one that would be worth keeping around. She still hated him and wanted him dead, but at the same time, she knew that if he ever died or hung up the cape, that her life would be less than nothing. Her feelings toward him felt very strange to her, to say the least. Strange, but not unwanted.

Tim produced a set of handcuffs and attempted to cuff her, but she escaped his hold on her.

"Come on, you didn't expect me to make this easy for you, did you?" said Marionette with a playful grin. "I'll admit though, I'm actually kind of looking forward to going back to Arkham, it'll give me a chance to relax and catch up with all the wonderful people I met in there. Can you believe that just over a year ago I couldn't stand that place? Now it's home." She leapt out of the way as he lunged for her. He grabbed her but she kneed him in the stomach and jumped out of his hold, but landed to close to the edge of the copter and nearly fell, but Tim grabbed her before she could fall.

"My hero," she giggled as she head-butted him. The blow hurt but he ignored it and grabbed her hands and twisted them roughly behind her back and cuffed her. He then took back control of the helicopter and flew it to Arkham. She made idle conversation as she stared at the window, and Tim knew she was seriously considering jumping out, and he worried he would have to go after her again. But she didn't, and behaved herself surprisingly well during the trip back.

He landed the helicopter on the landing pad near Arkham asylum and escorted her inside. She greeted everyone they passed as if they were best friends and waved as best she could with the cuffs on. Not waiting for any guards or doctors, he led her to the Joker's reserved cell, which had remained vacant ever since his last escape.

After he'd uncuffed her, before she went in, the Marionette threw her cuffed hands around his neck and stood up on her toes and pressed her lips fiercely against his.

To the Marionette, it was like the world was burning down all around them and they were being engulfed in the flames. The feeling of his lips on hers was better than the lovely sting of pain, better than the fun of plotting a heist, better than the thrill of the blood of her victims running down her face. She felt more alive than she had felt in a long time. In that moment, she was almost willing to give up her life as a rogue and try to regain her sanity and reshape herself to fit the mold. But not quite, not even he was worth that. She felt something like love for him, but she was even more in love with the chaos and insanity that seduced and ravaged her, she was addicted to the spirit of darkness that held her prisoner. Yet she didn't feel imprisoned at all, she felt freer than a bird let loose from its cage. She was a flame, beautiful to look at but destined to destroy everything she touched. She was drawn to the light in Robin because she could not understand it, and because it was something she could never possess. She was drawn to it and was fascinated by it, she wanted to destroy it and treasure it at the same time. He would never be hers, and so she wanted time to stand still forever, she wanted to die in his arms.

To Robin, the kiss caught him completely off guard, but he found that he didn't want it to end. He had kissed a few girls in his time, but this particular kiss sent sparks throughout his body. For so long after he had escaped the Joker he had felt so cold, but for once he felt warmth. In that moment, he felt the walls of his resistance begin to crumble, he felt the madness rise up within him and claim to consume him entirely, all for her. But no, he would never become that monster again. Robin was both blessed and cursed by the spirit of good and protection within him, never would he allow his light to be consumed by the dark. It was his destiny to uphold justice and keep peace and safety, but he could never have those things for himself. He wanted to free this girl from the madness that plagued her and whisk her away to some faraway land where they could be free from the burdens they had been chosen to bear, but knew it could never be so. It was their fate to be intertwined forever, locked in a perpetual dance but unable to touch each other, to love each other, and so with all his might, he pulled away from her, breaking the connection.

He disentangled himself from her cuffed hands and looked around, and was thankful to see that no one was around to see what had just happened. The only witnesses were a few sleeping patients and a janitor who looked surprised, but also looked like he had enjoyed seeing the spectacle before him.

"You're a much better kisser than Eddy ever was," commented Marionette as she cupped his cheek with her hand, her smile wider than ever. She said as as she went inside the cell, "Remember Batman, if you ever get lonely, or just feel like you could use a night of fun, you know where to find me. I look forward to our next date, Puddin'."

She threw herself on the little cot, laughing insanely as she did. Tim walked away then, his thoughts muddled and confused. He touched his lips, unsure of what to make of this. He shook his head to clear his mind. He didn't know how he'd felt about the kiss, which was usually meant to show affection but had probably meant something entirely different coming from her. He hated her, but at the same time she drove him crazy with feelings he couldn't quite comprehend, at least where she was concerned. No matter how he felt about her though, he would never give into that temptation.

He knew he would be fighting her for a very long time, and although his duty to protect was a heavy burden to bear, he was glad he was the one chosen for it. He couldn't imagine anything greater than protecting those who needed him. He was finally free of the Joker's curse on him, never again would he cross that line and become that which he despised, and never again would he sit by when people needed him. He knew better than to arrogantly assume that he was incapable of falling down the pit of madness again, but he would not allow that to happen, he would fight it with everything in him until the day he died. Whatever he had to do to fight the temptation, as it was very powerful and barely controlled, he would do it.


	29. Epilogue Part 1

"I just can't believe my plan could go so wrong, I planned for everything, this should never have happened," said Poison Ivy with disgust.

"Everyone makes mistakes Aunt Ivy, although yours takes the cake," Marionette laughed into the receiver. She was in Arkham, using the one hour of phone time she was given once a week to talk to her "aunt".

"This is no laughing matter, so shut up, Mari. I don't see how it could have gone so terribly wrong, I spent years working on this, before you were even born. You can't imagine how disappointing this is for me."

"At least it wasn't a total failure, I mean, he's just a boy, he can do whatever it was you had in mind, right?" They were talking about Ivy's experiment to create a plant-human hybrid. She had created similar creatures before, but none so complex as this. Having the same basic idea as the Joker, she'd attempted to create a hybrid that could think for herself and could take care of her babies after she was gone and punish anyone who tried to hurt them. But the experiment hadn't gone as planned. Being part plant herself, Ivy was withering, and didn't have time to try to redo the experiment, so she would have to make do with her son.

"Yes, he's more than capable of taking care of my precious babies, but why did he have to be male? I spent so much time trying to create a daughter and I get a man! Like the world needs anymore of those."

"My cousin isn't that bad, is he?" said Marionette as she tried half-heartedly to contain her mirth.

"No, Thorn is a good son, he's intelligent and kind and he's already out there protecting his brothers and sisters from being murdered, I couldn't have asked for a better child. But I just can't get over the fact that he's male. Men are nice to look at, but that's where their usefulness ends."

Suddenly, the door opened and a guard stepped in. "Rose, you're time is up."

"Give me just a minute, please?" she asked sweetly. The guard reluctantly agreed and left her alone.

"As soon as you get out of the funny farm I want you to come see me, I need to give you the booster I gave your mother," said Ivy. She hadn't been in the asylum for several years, claiming to have gone straight so she could work on her "child project," without interference from the Bat or the police. Due to her hyperactive immune system, she was incapable of bearing children, so she had had to use other means.

"I actually think I inherited my parent's immunity, so there's no need, " she told her. "I wondered why I never got sick as a kid, or why I'm stronger than I should be, and I guess this is why. I've been experimenting, testing my limits, and I've found that it takes a dose of any poison large enough to kill a drove of elephants to affect me, even more to kill me. I can't imagine how much Dad must have given me to have affected me in the partner challenge. But what I'm wondering is, why bother?" she asked her as she twirled one of her green curls. "You seem to like me well enough, but not as much as you liked Mom. I have too much of the Joker in me for us to ever be very close, so I'm wondering why you want to help me, or why you bothered giving me your phone number when Batman brought me back here seven months ago."

A few days after she had been arrested, she'd received a bouquet of striped flowers in the mail. She doubted they had been a gift from Batman, and at first they seemed innocent enough, but upon closer inspection she noticed that the stripes formed symbols, and after studying them for a few minutes decoded them and found that they formed a phone number. It wasn't difficult to figure out who would send a message like that, and after dialing the number spoke to the woman who had been like a sister to her mother for the first time. Ever since then, she would call Ivy twice a month, using up the rest of her phone time to make prank calls.

"Because I promised Harley that I would take care of you. After she told me she was pregnant she made me swear that I would protect you, should anything ever happen to her. I miss her, she was the only meat-bag I ever liked, and you've got enough of her in you to not be entirely insufferable like your father, may he rot in his grave. You know, I think I could take care of that skin condition for you permanently."

"You mean to say that you want to take away my dazzling good looks?" she asked as she put a hand over her heart in a shocked gesture, even though she couldn't see it. "Aunt Ivy, you're not jealous, are you?"

"Ha ha, very funny. You just had to inherit your father's sense of humor right along with his complexion, didn't you? I swear, if it weren't for my promise to your mother and the fact that you're so much like her, I would kill you."

"Is that a challenge?" She asked with a smirk. "It would be so sad for Thorn to lose his mother when he's just a baby, even though you said he looks to be about twelve."

"I was just kidding Mari, although I really would like to kill you sometimes. The only reason I never killed your father was because Harley would never have forgiven me, but I always wonder if I made a mistake."

"Miss Quinn, you're time is up," said the guard, and she knew she wasn't going to be able to extend her time any longer, as she had done it five times already.

"I got to go Aunt Ivy, tell Thorny I said hi."

"Wait, would you like me to send you some of my mind-controlling lipstick?" Ivy asked. "Or some of the toxic version, perhaps?"

"And just where would the fun be in that? It's much more fun to seduce men with looks and words than with pheromones. Although I might take you up on your offer of the toxic stuff, just this once, I could have all sorts of fun with that."

She hung up the phone and allowed her guards to escort her to therapy with her old doctor, Joan Leland. Joan was the only female doctor willing to work with her, as none of the men doctors were allowed to treat her. They were trying to avoid another "Harley Quinn incident" as they called it, which irked her.

Therapy with Joan bored her, and she tuned out most of it. It was mostly the same as her therapy sessions before had been, only this time there were guards stationed outside the door. Joan felt sorry for her patient, remembering all the times she had tried to help Harley without success. She was older now and was due for retirement, but found that she couldn't give it up, even though it was far from her dream job. She supposed it was because she felt guilty for failing Harleen when she should have seen the signs of what was happening to her and helped her, but had been blind to Harleen's deteriorating mental state. She felt it was her duty to make up for it by helping others, and now it was her duty to try to save her daughter, though she feared she would fail, just as she had failed Harleen.

After her session had finally ended, Marionette was allowed to go to the common room, where she found her place amongst the other rogues being held there. Two-Face, Riddler, Scarecrow, and Mad Hatter were watching the news as she plopped down on the only available seat left on the couch.

"What's shakin' guys?" she asked with a mischievous grin. She knew how much they hated the sight of her, because they had hated her father before her. However, because she was Harley's daughter, they tolerated her, to an extent.

Two-Face flipped his coin and said, "Why don't you go play with the kids, Mari, and let the adults alone to have some peace."

"I would, but I like to dedicate as much time as I can to the elderly," she retorted. Marionette looked over to where he had pointed and saw the kids he was talking about. There were never as many children and teenagers in the asylum as there were adults, even fewer after the Joker's Circus. There were only a small group of teenagers, and two children. Even if they displayed blatant symptoms of mental illness, most children and teens weren't put in Arkham, and were instead treated at smaller, private facilities, so they must have been really screwed up to end up in here. She knew one of the kids, a four year old girl, had burned her house to the ground, killing her sleeping family inside. The other, an eight year old boy, had been admitted to Arkham by his concerned parents because he was obsessed with fear. From what she'd heard, he constantly put himself in dangerous situations because he loved the feel of his own fear, and once he discovered what someone was afraid of, he would try to force that person to face that fear because he wanted them to experience the high of fear he was addicted to. Scarecrow vehemently denied having any interest in the boy, but it was obvious from the way he would look at him that he wanted him, wanted to take him under his wing.

He wasn't the only one interested in finding an heir, however. Ivy had created Thorn to protect the earth, Scarface had made Mr. Wesker put an ad in the paper for a skilled ventriloquist to work as his slave after Arnold died, and Scarecrow wanted that kid to take his place as "god of fear" after he was gone. She had even heard that Killer Croc was searching for a mate to produce a reptile baby, but so far had been unsuccessful. They hadn't thought ahead like the Joker had, and so they were very behind. There were some who didn't want an heir, though. The Riddler didn't want anyone to match his intelligence prowess, and Two-Face didn't care about continuing his legacy through a child, though his wife was pregnant and he was hoping for twins. Other rogues had popped up here and there, and though most of them were wannabes who would never amount to anything, there were some who she knew would go far in the underworld.

Without looking at her, the Riddler said, "What does man love more than life, fear more than death, or mortal strife? What the poor have, the rich require, and what contented men desire. What the miser spends and the spendthrift saves; every man is born with it but none carry to their graves. Blind men see it, deaf men hear it, and if you eat it you'll die. It is greater than God and more evil than the devil, what is it?"

This was one of Marionette's favorite games in the asylum. While they weren't friends in any sense of the word, she and the Riddler both loved to test each other's wit with riddles, and the game would only end when one of them stumped the other. Sometimes their games would last for days, their current record was a month and four days.

"Elementary, my dear Watson," she said as studied her nails. "Nothing."

He smiled and said, "Very good, I thought for sure that one would stump you. Do you have one of your own?"

"I always have one, got to keep you on your toes, don't I?" she asked. "What happens when you throw a yellow rock into a purple stream?"

The Riddler opened his mouth to reply, but paused, and he looked uncertain. He scratched the side of his head and mumbled to himself what the answer could be for the entire rest of the hour, while the rest of them argued over what to watch on TV. After their time was up, as they were being led back to their cells, he said, "All right Marionette, what's the answer?" He looked frustrated and angry that he had lost to the Joker's kid. He didn't lose often, but when he did it always upset him very much. He would have killed her by now, but he and the rest of the rogues, or most of them anyway, believed in professional courtesy, up to a point, of course. Secretly he respected her too, however grudgingly, as did the other rogues. They may not have liked her, but they couldn't deny she was very powerful in the underworld, and would only become greater as time went on. Her father would be very proud, and the thought made Edward grind his teeth.

"It splashes." She threw her head back and laughed at the sounds of outrage coming out of the Riddler's mouth, unable to believe the answer had been so simple, and he had missed it. "You must be losing your edge with age Eddy, that or you're too smart for your own good. I take it you'll be wanting a rematch, then?"

He fought against his guards, trying to get his hands around her throat for making him look bad, even though no one who had witnessed it really cared that much, though the other rogues thought it was humorous that the Joker's pride and joy had beat him, and that he was now trying to kill her.

"What's the matter Eddy, the Joker's brat too smart for you?" jeered Jervis, angering Riddler further and causing the others to laugh at him.

Marionette was escorted back to her cell. A plate of food was slid through the tiny slot in her cell, and she realized she hadn't eaten in over three days. It wasn't that she hadn't wanted to or that they hadn't been feeding her, she'd simply been forgetting to eat. It happened every now and again when she was riding on the high that brainstorming a new plan always brought her. They had to make sure every inmate ate at least once a day, because some wouldn't do it willingly, and they didn't need any lawsuits because they'd let a patient starve, somehow it just wouldn't look good to their sponsors. She hadn't been going to the cafeteria, and so they'd had to resort to bringing her food to her cell, like breakfast in bed. How nice of them.

As she laid down on her cot whistling cheerily to herself, she thought back to the first time she had been admitted, and how much she had hated it and wanted nothing more than to leave. She was also reminded of Erin's threats to lock her away forever and how scared she had been of the place before she had ever even set foot inside, and it made her laugh, because it was just another sign of how much she had changed. Now she thought of this place as her home, and how she was due for a vacation.

The lights outside were dimmed, which was the only way she knew it to be evening. They could never turn off the lights completely, because there were several patients who feared the dark and would scream until the lights were turned back on. Even with all the fluorescent lighting, however, the place was perpetually dark, as if some hulking shadow engulfed it. To many of the inmates, that shadow looked like a certain bat.

She thought about that Bat, and the last time he'd come to visit her. Three times in the last seven months she'd been here he'd come to her for information, whether it be because he thought the Jokerz were up to something (which was ridiculous, because they weren't allowed to break the law unless she specifically ordered it. She wouldn't even allow them to mug people or steal purses anymore, because she was in charge of them and those petty crimes would reflect on her and her father and make them look bad). Other times he came to her because he believed she had information on some villain terrorizing the city. He didn't know that she got her information straight from Jolly Joe, whom she'd forced to get a job as an orderly so that he could pass along information to her. She liked to think of his interrogations as dates, and the last time he'd come he'd been looking for information on the new mob boss, and he'd said something that had gotten her to thinking.

After over an hour of interrogating her and gaining only worthless information from her, such as the twelve ways she'd learned to kill a man with a spoon, he finally gave up and turned to go, but not before saying, "You know Rose, you have so much potential that you're wasting here. You're brilliant and strong, you could do so much good for the people in this city, for the whole world. Why can't you see that your unique skills should be used to save lives, not take them away?"

She'd pondered long and hard on his words and had come to a decision. She would take his advice, and she'd get her Jokerz to help, too. She'd be freaking Mother Theresa, she'd show him just how much "good" she could do.

She sat up on her bed and thought for a moment as to how exactly she was going to do this. Many ideas popped into her head at once; she had learned so many ways to get in and out of her cell without detection in her time there, and she wasn't sure which she should use. But as one of the doctors passed by her cell, she made her decision.

"Doctor!" she called out to him, and he paused to look at her. She recognized him as Dr. Jackson Sawyer, a man she'd had her eye on for a while. He would serve her nicely, and she even had a name picked out for him already.

"Patient 7734, what is it?" he asked, using her number instead of her name. It was standard procedure, but she would change that.

"I need to talk to you, please," she said, her voice frantic and pleading. He regarded her with his jade green eyes, trying to see if she was playing a trick on him. He was currently the youngest doctor working there, and also the most attractive. She didn't care what her pawns looked like, but it was a nice bonus when they were nice to look at. She'd been planning this for some time now, and he struck her as the perfect candidate for her escape.

Jackson couldn't be sure what she wanted from him. All he knew about the young woman before him he had learned from watching the Joker's game show and from reading her file, but he wanted to study her, he wanted to understand her. He had seen her many times in the asylum, when she was being taken to and from therapy or when she was causing trouble in the common room or the cafeteria, but he wanted to know her, really know her, and to know her mind.

He was a prodigy, a genius, excelling in every subject and completing college at sixteen with a PhD. With a brain like his he could have had any career he wanted, but he chose to become a psychiatrist. His mother had suffered from schizophrenia and he wanted so much to help her and those like her, and so he became obsessed with the human mind. He had already written several best-sellers even though he was barely twenty-three, and after curing all his former patients at the mental asylum he had started out in, he chose to go to Arkham asylum, because he loved a challenge. Rose was the ultimate challenge, her mind trapped within seemingly impenetrable layers of psychosis, and so naturally, he was drawn to her case.

"Would you like me to get your doctor?" he asked. He was intrigued by her, but he respected his colleagues and didn't want to overstep his bounds.

"No, I want to talk to you. Joan doesn't understand me, I need someone else to help me. Please, I can't take this anymore," she whispered.

Feeling sorry for the poor girl, and unable to curb his curiosity, he decided to forego hospital policy and opened her door and led her to his office. He noted the way her head drooped, her expression one of grief and anxiety.

Once they were inside, he ushered her to the chair before his desk and locked the door. He sat down and asked, "What's upsetting you, 7734?"

"Could you please call me by my name? I'm not a number, after all," she said without looking up.

He knew it was against protocol, but that was the least of his worries at this point. Besides, he was breaking a lot of other rules just by having her in his office, this one was insignificant compared to those. "All right then, Rose it is."

"I meant my real name," she said quietly.

"Marionette isn't your real name, Rose is. I'm sorry, but accepting that will help you," he said gently.

She shrugged indifferently, then wrapped her arms around her stomach and said, "I'm so afraid."

"Of what, your father?" he asked. He had always been intrigued by the human mind, of what it was capable of, but Rosemary Quinn's mind in particular fascinated him, because she had so much of the Joker in her. He was fascinated by the clown's psychosis, but had never gotten the chance to speak with him in person. So far no one had made any sort of progress with her, and he found that he actually pitied her. He knew she was a murderer, but he sincerely believed she was just a lost little girl, trapped in a fantasy world of her own making, and that it was the Joker's fault she had turned out this way, and he hated him for it.

She shook her head and said, "Of them, the people outside. They think I'm a monster, but the truth is… the truth is that this is the only way I can be. Daddy molded me into this, I can't be like them. They want to hurt me because I'm different. I don't want to be different, but it's all I know."

He felt his heart go out to her. People would always be cruel to her because she didn't fit in, just as they had been cruel to him for the same reason. He had always been smarter than those around him, even the adults when he was just a child, and they all despised him as a result.

In the asylum, at least in this one, it wasn't uncommon for guards and orderlies to target the patients in their charge and hurt them, or to move in on them. No patient was really ever safe from this, the women more so than the men, the rogue women especially. With their wild beauty and dangerous side, they were irresistible targets for the male staff. He had heard stories of all the times Poison Ivy and Harley Quinn had been attacked in this way, always teaching those responsible the hard way that they were not to be messed with. Rose was the same way, and bested every one of her attackers. Even though he knew she was more than capable of taking care of herself physically, he feared she was unable to protect herself mentally, which explained her psychosis. Those pigs, he thought angrily, no woman deserved to be treated that way, not even ones like Rose or Poison Ivy, the ones who killed indiscriminately and uncaringly. Jackson truly believed that anyone could be cured, if you could just find out the source of the problem and fix it. Easier said than done, but he'd done it before, surely he could do it again. If only they would let him treat her.

It didn't seem fair to him that he shouldn't be allowed to treat her just because he was male. He knew there was always the possibility of an unprofessional attachment forming between doctor and patient, and there was always a possibility she could use her feminine wiles against him to escape, but he was stronger than that, he would not be fooled into doing such things. But no one wanted to take the risk, so he would just have to make do with their talk now, and be grateful he'd been given this chance, however small it was.

"People can be very cruel," he said compassionately. "Is that why you do the things you do, because you feel this way?"

"I just wish they could understand, but no one does," she said softly as a tear rolled down her cheek and dripped from her chin. "They think I'm evil, but I've never hurt anyone, not really."

"You've killed many people Rose," he pointed out. "How can you say you haven't hurt anyone?"

"Sure I've killed people, but if you look at the big picture, I'm just a wild card who was almost lost in the deck. I don't add or take away from the others, I just am."

With every word she spoke, he found himself more and more at a loss for words, and also more and more intrigued. He would love nothing more than to spend the rest of his life studying this girl's mind, it was like a goldmine. What secrets lay hidden there, what was the key to unlocking her unique, ill mind? As he tried to think of a response to her previous statement, she finally met his gaze and said, "Have you ever looked death in the face, Jack?"

"Please, call me Dr. Sawyer." He wasn't used to being called Jack, and though he didn't mind the nickname, he wanted to keep this meeting as professional as possible, even though he was technically breaking the rules by having her in his office anyway. "And no, I can't say that I have."

"I have, plenty of times," she said wistfully. "It's not like people expect it to be. I don't know what happens after death, but as you come closer to it, at first you feel scared, but the fear goes away and is replaced with a sense of numbness, of acceptance. You realize that death has won, and you realize just how meaningless your life was in the grand scheme of things. I know what you're thinking, that I'm just a victim, but I'm not." The expression on her face changed, no longer afraid and ashamed, but naughty. "I wanted this, Jackie-boy. It's sweet that you want to help me, you think I'm a bit off, but what can you do about it? I'm already in the asylum, and the doctors themselves are coming closer to being "cured" than I ever will be. But I like you doc, you're not a swine like the rest of them. You have a good heart, the kind that a person like me can't help but corrupt and destroy."

As she said this, she climbed onto his desk, knocking aside his many folders and papers. She grabbed him by his lab coat and pulled him closer to her and kissed him. What surprised him was not the kiss itself, but the fact that he was kissing her back. He knew how wrong it was, but he enjoyed it so much he couldn't stop. He'd kissed plenty of girls before, but never had he felt sparks like this before, it was like she had set him on fire with just the touch of her lips on his.

He had always believed that relationships between doctor and patient were wrong, but in that moment he stopped caring about the rules entirely. He wanted her, he wanted this girl to be his forever, regardless of the consequences. His career, his friends, his whole life, none of it would matter if he could just have her. It was crazy, what was happening to him? He knew better than that, knew better than to assume that things could ever be as simple as that, but her beauty and her unique mind and way of thinking enraptured him. Everyone always told him that he was impulsive, and when he decided to do something, he gave himself completely without holding back. He supposed that he had loved her since the first moment he saw her but had refused to believe it or give in to it, but he could deny it no longer. He knew that it would take time, but if he could help her return to sanity, then they could be together. It was all he wanted.

But then he felt sharp pain, and broke off the kiss to discover that she'd taken his letter opener and sliced open his neck with it. The brief moment of shock disappeared as he felt hot blood run down his neck, and he fell out of his chair and onto the floor as he convulsed violently and uncontrollably.

She leaned down to look at him, and he was shocked to see that there was a look of genuine sadness in her eyes. "You would have made such a great sidekick, Jigsaw, you had such potential to help me take over Gotham, but you see, I'm a one-man loon. I'm afraid I like you too much to keep you around, because Batman is very jealous and possessive of me. It'd break his heart if he ever found out about us."

She took his keys and kissed his cheek and walked out, out of his office and out of the asylum. As he lay dying in a pool of his own blood, Jackson felt a tear run down his face. Even after what she'd just done to him, he still felt sorry for her and wanted to help her, but now he never could. He wanted to save her so that they could be together in happiness, but now they'd never get the chance. As he drew his final breaths, as he faced death and looked it in the eye, he found that she had told him the truth, and he felt his fear dissipate as acceptance and numbness overcame him. He was going to die, there was no denying it, and he wondered what awaited him on the other side. He hoped that one day he could see her again. He could think only of the irresistible succubus that was the Marionette, the clown puppet that had stolen his life, as well as his heart.

_To be continued…_


	30. Epilogue Part 2

**Chapter 30: Epilogue Part 2**

Tim was leaving the movie theater with Violet, having just seen the latest horror flick. Neither of them particularly liked horror movies, because when you fight crime for a living and see horror in real life almost every night, in movies it seems cheesy and childish compared to the real thing. So instead they'd spent the last two hours pointing out the ridiculousness of the mayhem while everyone else either screamed in fear or yelled at them to shut up.

As they walked down the street, they accidentally barreled right into a guy walking in the opposite direction. He and Violet butted heads, hard.

"Ow, hey sorry about that," he said as he rubbed his head.

"Oh no, it was my fault," said Violet as she winced at the pain.

As Tim watched her violet eyes find his silvery gray ones, he thought he saw magic happen, but kept quiet, of course.

"Hey, uh, maybe we could go out sometime?" he suggested. "I'm Will, by the way."

Violet said nothing, and seemed to curl inward on herself a bit. Tim knew that, even though she spoke easily with him and Barbara, with most people she was completely lost on what to say or how to react. She was getting better and working hard on it, but he knew talking to others would always be a challenge for her, especially around cute guys. Will looked at her expectantly, and so Tim took the initiative for her.

"She'd love to," he said, and Violet's eyes widened and her face flushed with color. She put her arms around herself, as if wishing she could disappear.

"Are you sure?" Will asked, wondering about her hesitation.

They were standing close enough together that he was able to elbow her without Will noticing, and she got the message.

"Yes, I would love to go out with you," she said as she managed a smile.

"Okay," he said as his face relaxed. "Just let me give you my phone number."

They exchanged phone numbers, and then Will said with a friendly smile, "I'll see you soon."

"See you," she said timidly as she waved goodbye. Once he was out of earshot Violet turned on Tim. "Why did you do that?"

"Do what?" he asked innocently.

"You know there's no way I can date that guy, you know how I am, you just set me up to fail!"

Tim knew how badly Violet wanted friends, but because of her social awkwardness, she was content to let every opportunity to meet someone new pass right by her. Tim really couldn't blame her for this, after all, she'd been conditioned by Gianni that to express herself in any way was wrong, and any and every time she had tried she was met with a slap or a kick, or worse. Really, it was a wonder she could speak at all after such abuse at the hands of the man who had, over the course of several decades, taken three baby girls and raised them until he considered them too old, and then murdered them.

He and Bruce had managed to find the families of the two dead girls, Isabella and Evangeline, who had been so relieved to finally have closure after so many years. But they never were able to find Violet's family, and so he and Barbara and the others were the only family she had. For most of her life the only person she had known was her doll-obsessed pedophile captor, and so she had no idea how to relate or act around people her own age, with Tim being the only exception. This made school very difficult for her, but she handled it by keeping her head down and focusing on her studies. She didn't want him to interfere because it embarrassed her, though it was obvious that on some level she appreciated his support. She used to not want friends at all, but as she progressed, he could see that she was beginning to crave friendship but had no idea of how to communicate with others, instead turning them off by either saying the wrong thing or saying nothing at all. In every way she was a genius, except in that one area, and so he and Barbara took it upon themselves to help her out or to give her an occasional nudge in the right direction. He knew that if he didn't step in and show her what to do, she would never take the initiative on her own, and he cared too much about her to let her go through life alone like that.

"You'll be fine, and if you have trouble I'm sure he'll understand. And if he doesn't, big whoop, it's not like I just gave him your hand in marriage," Tim retorted. "I saw the way you were looking at him, you owe me big time for this one."

"Yeah sure, you just want to be rid of me," she replied. He could tell that she wasn't really mad at him, and he detected a hint of relief and excitement in her. "But now we have to find someone for you, don't we?" she said jokingly.

"What is this, _The Bachelor_?" he replied sarcastically. It had been a while since his last girlfriend, but lately he had met no one that interested him, which he supposed was a good thing. After all, how could he be with anyone with the responsibility of protecting Gotham on his shoulders? He wouldn't be able to live with himself if someone else got hurt because of him.

Then again, there was one girl who had stirred feelings within him, but he refused to even think about her unless he absolutely had to. He was glad she was in the asylum, where he wouldn't have to babysit her.

They got in Tim's car, and he reluctantly conceded to letting Violet drive. She would be taking her driver's test next week and needed the experience, and, as he told himself, if they got a ticket it wasn't like they couldn't pay it off.

They bickered all the way back to Wayne Manor, where Bruce was waiting for them, and he didn't look happy.

"Since this morning, there have been dozens of reports of people being attacked by police for no reason at all," he explained as they went down to the Batcave. "Also, many people have been brought into the hospital claiming to have been attacked by the Batman for breaking minor laws, such as speeding and jaywalking."

"Who's responsible for this?" asked Violet. "Does this vigilante actually think they're doing any good?"

Tim felt himself become annoyed as he went to put on the Bat suit. He had been patrolling the city for weeks without taking any time for leisure and resting only when his body could take no more, and in that time nothing major had happened, save for a minor explosion and the usual gang violence and store robberies. But the one time Violet managed to convince him to take the day off, naturally chaos strikes.

"We don't know who's behind this, but the GPD say that it's not their men, that the culprits are dressing up to look like police officers for some reason," said Bruce.

"We'll go now, see what we can find," said Tim as he got in the driver's seat of the Batmobile.

Violet pulled off her clothes, revealing her costume underneath. She secured her mask over her face as she joined him, but before they could leave, Bruce said solemly, "And Marionette escaped last night, she may be behind this."

Tim felt a sinking feeling in his chest as he nodded, and they raced off into the night.

As he drove, Tim thought about his duty as Batman, and how it and the Joker's circus had affected him. Being Batman was different than what he'd thought it was like as a child, and though he preferred the Robin costume, he accepted his duty as the new Batman.

He couldn't believe how much he had changed in just the past few years. He found it almost impossible to believe that he'd once been just an innocent kid, tagging along for the ride out of a sense of justice, and because what kid would turn down a chance at fighting at the Batman's side? The powerful sense of justice was still there, but he had become hardened like Bruce, and no longer did it for the fun of it. He did it because it was what he was meant to do, because it was his burden to bear.

They soon parked and climbed out, and almost immediately they came upon a cop beating a man in the street with his nightstick. No one passing by stopped to help because they fell for the disguise, but by the way the man was yelling, they could tell something was wrong there.

"P-Please, I've done nothing wrong!" the man cried as the cop smashed his face with the nightstick.

"Quiet, you no-good hooligan!" the man yelled. "You stood there and watched while that sweet and innocent elderly woman crossed the street and didn't even offer to assist her! There's a special circle of hell for people like you."

Tim and Violet ran over and attempted to pull the "cop" off the man, who was now sobbing on the ground. Violet pulled him away while Tim proceeded to take the man's weapon and socked him in the kisser. He grabbed him by the front of his shirt and growled in his face, "Who are you and why are you doing this?"

"The boss wants to clean up crime in this city, I'm just doin' my civic duty," he replied.

Before he could interrogate him further, screams broke out. He looked and, as far as the eye could see, people everywhere were being attacked by people dressed as cops, and the people around them didn't know what to do. Some were being beaten, some were being tazed or tear-gassed, and some were being handcuffed and led into cars with lights taped on top.

He and Violet started taking out as many cops as they could, but there seemed to be no end to them, and the crowd was beginning to panic. They didn't know what was going on or who to trust, because while they were being assaulted by cops, they still didn't trust him or Batgirl, especially not with the imposter Bat on the loose.

Real cops entered the scene and helped to take down the imposters, but as they began to gain control over the imposter situation, they ran into another problem: the crowd. They booed and jeered at him, and those around him grabbed at him, as if literally trying to tear him apart. It both irked and unnerved him; how was he supposed to help these people if they killed him first?

One man rose up and shouted, "The vigilantes in this city are out of control, they've never been able to solve our problems, they cause as much trouble as the rogues! Batman killed the Joker, who's to say he won't kill any of us if we step out of line?"

"No more vigilantes! No more vigilantes!" they chanted.

Tim realized that he needed to take control of the situation before things got too out of hand. He looked to Violet, and she gave him a look that seemed to say, "Good luck." He got out of the people's grasp and stood atop one of the police cars, and prepared himself to do something his predecessors had never done: speak directly to the people at large and try to reason with them.

"Listen to me!" he shouted, but they didn't listen and continued to jeer and mock him, and the police had their guns trained on him. If he didn't do this right he could end up in jail, or dead. He noticed a camera crew setting up for the local news station, and Violet ran over to them, stole one of their mics, and threw it to him. To make them listen he bellowed into it, "Quiet, all of you! Shut up!"

That took them by surprise long enough for him to speak. "I am not your enemy, nor is any member of the Bat family. We are here to protect you from those who would do you harm, but they have confused you into thinking that we are the source of the problem, when in reality we are doing our upmost best to solve it." He knew that the people in Gotham believed he was the same Batman that had carried out justice for decades, and Bruce wanted it that way because the Batman was a legend to the people, a symbol to inspire them, a hero that they could look up to and put their trust in, and so he would need to phrase his next words carefully. "The Joker was not killed by the hand of the Batman, I swore to never take life, even in its lowest form. I know why you're all acting this way, you're scared, and you have every right to be scared. This city has been plagued with evil and wickedness almost as long as it's existed, so many of you have been killed by people consumed with that same evil. You've always had trouble trusting us because it seems impossible that there would be people out there fighting for good, instead of tearing it down. You expect us to act as the rogues do, because it's what makes sense to you. But we are different from them, if you would only see it. We've devoted our lives to cleansing Gotham, but you must help us also. You cannot lean on us like a crutch and expect us to make all the bad go away, you must do your part as well, or else Gotham will fall. Be the change you wish to see in the world, and let us handle the rest."

The crowd calmed down and the police slowly lowered their guns. Tim stepped off the car and Violet ran over to him, her face beaming as she whispered, "I never knew you were so inspirational."

"I'm not, I don't know where that came from," he replied, feelings his cheeks burn with embarrassment. Public speaking had never been his strong suit, and so he had no idea how he'd done that. He hoped with every fiber of his being he would never have to do it again.

"But it worked, at least for now," she said.

He wondered how long his speech would pacify them. He couldn't really tell what they were thinking or what they would do, but he had calmed them for now at least, and so the police were able to take care of the rest of the imposters.

Out of the blue, in his peripheral vision, Tim saw a dark figure with bat ears grapple onto a high building. He pursued the caped figure, leaving Violet to help the police.

He grappled onto the same building and followed him. He lost track of him for a few minutes, but then he heard him say loudly, "This looks like a job for… Batman!" He found him breaking up a mugging. He observed for a minute to see what he would do. He wanted to see just what this person was after, and if they were with the imposter-cops or not. He couldn't see his face, and wondered if it was one of the new rogues or someone who had deluded themselves into believing they were actually helping people. Either way, the person had to be stopped.

The caped figure finished beating up the mugger, and then the victim spoke.

"Thank you so much, Batman," said the man gratefully.

"All in a day's work," said the vigilante, his voice a bit on the high side but raspy and gravelly at the same time. He had taken the man's wallet from the thief and he then tossed it into a trashcan, and then pulled out a small flamethrower and set the can ablaze.

"What are you doing!?" the man cried as his money turned to ash.

"Keeping the hobos warm," the vigilante replied simply.

"What's wrong with you? I thought you were here to help me," said the man indignantly.

"I did," replied the vigilante. "But now it's your turn."

"My turn?" asked the man, confused. "Wh-What do you mean?"

"You should have given that man some money, didn't your parents ever teach you to share?" he said as he turned on him, causing him to take a step back. "That man was probably trying to feed his family, and now they'll starve. You deserve to watch your money burn. How can you live with yourself? Scum like you make me sick."

Tim had seen enough and leapt down from his hiding place as the imposter took out a knife. He knocked him to the ground as the man ran away so fast he almost tripped over his own two feet. He grabbed the imposter by the arm and looked into his face and saw that it wasn't a man at all, but a certain pasty-faced clown woman. Marionette.

"What are you doing?" he snarled, angry but not very surprised to discover she was the one behind this.

"Why, doing exactly what you said, of course!" she said, as though this should have been obvious. "You said my exceptional talents and abilities could do so much to help Gotham, and that's what I'm doing. Aren't you proud of me?" she asked, her lower lip stuck out in a pout.

"This isn't what I meant, and you know it."

"But Bats, how can you expect to put an end to the big crimes if you don't punish the small ones? No one will take you seriously if you punish a man for murder and not another for not tipping his waitress. Why, I came across a child who threw his juice box on the ground, even though there was a trashcan right there in front of him! He was on a bad road, I saved him from a lonely life of murder and thievery."

He hated how she would take every word he said and twist them with her insane logic. "But why dress up like me?" he asked, even though he felt sure he already knew the answer.

"Well, I thought that as long as I'm going to be doing Gotham a favor, I might as well make them think it's you. I mean, they don't like you very much, now do they? But by the time I'm through with this city, they'll be drooling all over you. No need to repay me, justice is its own reward."

"Stop this now, Rose!" he growled furiously.

"Sorry, can't stop now, at the rate I'm going they'll be giving me the key to the city by the end of the week!" she laughed as she suddenly weaseled out of his hold and ran. As he chased after her she threw back a smiley-faced grenade with the pin pulled out into his hands, and it exploded just as he threw it, the force of it sending him flat on his back. He felt a bit dazed but ignored it and chased after again her as she laughed manically.

He fired a rope that wrapped around her ankles and tripped her, and once she had fallen he ran over to her and cuffed her. She somehow managed to stand without tipping over and began strangling him with the handcuffs, and he punched her in the eye and slipped out of her hold. She recovered almost instantly and leapt on his back and he attempted to throw her off, but even though she was weaker than him, she was smaller and faster, not to mention she had her father's iron will and insanity on her side. He finally managed to throw her off and grabbed her by the throat and held her up off the ground so that they were eye to eye. He felt his rage at her surging through his body, but as he looked into her madly grinning face, he felt and odd stirring in his chest that didn't mix well with his anger.

Her face, despite the unnatural pallor of it and her clownish appearance, was utterly perfect, even though it was damaged from his beating. Her eyes were like jewels, even though they were always filled with the madness of her father. Every feature of her face looked as if it had been carved by angels. Such a beautiful face didn't belong on such a cruel monster.

But it wasn't just her appearance that drew him to her, her mind also drew him in. Everything she said was so profound, and even though the words she spoke were twisted, especially when it came to her outlook on life, everything she said made sense. The Joker had been philosophical in this way, which was where she had gotten it from, but coming out of her mouth it was alluring, like the call of a siren. There were days when he could ignore it with flippant ease, but there were other days when it took a lot of willpower just to shove those thoughts from his mind.

But most of all, it was just Rose herself. There was something about her that he couldn't seem to get enough of, something only he could understand. She haunted his dreams, her face was always at the back of his mind. Sometimes he would find himself going to Arkham to see her, telling himself it was for information even if he didn't think she had it. It was wrong on so many levels for him to feel this way about her, he hated her, and yet, if he was being truly honest with himself, he loved her as well. He had a feeling that she felt the same way about him, though in her own insane way. She hadn't killed him despite having more than one opportunity to do so, and she constantly sought after him to "play" with him. He remembered what she had said, that perhaps in another life they might have been together. He hadn't believed her, but now he realized that perhaps if she hadn't been so consumed with the mental illness that plagued her, if she didn't choose to be this demonic force, and if he had never become Robin or Batman, that they might have had a life together. But he pushed those thoughts out of his mind. Regardless of any feelings he had for her, he would not allow her to twist his mind. He would never give her any sort power over him, and even though part of him desired her greatly, he would never allow himself to lose his mind ever again, especially not to her.

As he attempted to subdue her, he thought of how tragic her life was, even though she truly believed she was happy. He remembered what Bruce had said, about how mental illness was sometimes the brain's way of coping with stress, and he couldn't imagine the kind of stress that would cause the brain to have to resort to this level of insanity to cope. It wasn't right, no one deserved to suffer like she must have. He longed to put an to end all the evil and wickedness in his city, he wanted nothing more than to make it a place where people didn't have to be afraid to leave their homes and live their lives, where people wouldn't have to resort to crime to support themselves, where people were kind to and trusted their neighbors, and where there would be no crazed villains plotting their demise. He knew what she had told him was true, that he couldn't save everyone, and she was right. There was no way he could save every life, and if there ever came a day when Gotham's crime-rate was no longer the highest in the country, it likely would not happen in his lifetime. But he would strive to save every life that he could, and to do whatever he had to do to make Gotham a better, safer place. Even if he only ever saved one life in his entire vigilante career, it would be worth the sacrifice.

He led her to the Batmobile and strapped her in tightly. As they drove to Arkham Island, she chatted about how her week had been, how she'd come up with a way to tweak her father's laughing toxin to make it kick in later to give the victim false hope for a few hours and then killing them, and about why she loved the color orange. But as they were driving through the trees, she stopped giggling and looked up at him and, in all seriousness, said, "You know, I think I've finally found my Kansas."

"What?" he asked, confused by her words. It was no less random than the rest of her monologue had been, but this got his attention.

"When I was in the asylum the first time, I watched _The Wizard of Oz_ and found myself in Dorothy's ruby slippers. I was surrounded by a bunch of weirdos and I had no idea of how to get where I belonged, but in the end my father, the wizard, showed me that I'd had the power to create my own Kansas all along, and all I had to do was click my heels and open myself up to the truth everyone denies exists. My Kansas is right here with you, Bat-boy, and I gotta say, there really is no place like home."

Tim found himself unnerved by what she had said. It bothered him more than anything else she'd said that night, which was saying quite a lot. He didn't answer her, but in his mind he couldn't help but ask himself, _Have I found my Kansas?_

He shook the thought away as he heard her say, "Batty darling, I'm not ready to go back just yet."

He ignored her, and so she began to poke him as best she could while restrained. When she spoke, her voice sounded like that of a little girl begging her parents to let her stay up past her bedtime. "Come on, I've only been out for one day and you're already bringing me back? This is my vacation here, and I don't know about you, but I don't do stay-cations. Don't tell me you're done playing so soon, darling? What do you do when I'm in Arkham, hm? Miss me and wait for me to break out again? I know you won't admit it to yourself, but I can see it. You think you have friends like Mimey and Bruce Wayne, but you know that I'm the only true thing you have to hold to, I'm the only constant in your life. Friends will betray you, they'll leave you all alone, but despite what they may say, I'll always be here for you. I wish you could see things the way I do, then you'd be happy and free, too."

"Quiet," he grunted, and she stuck out her tongue at him. He didn't want to hear any of this, because he knew how easy it was to fall for her trap. He knew better than to believe her lies, but he wasn't going to take any chances by letting her speak them. To think he was entirely immune would be arrogant and foolish and would be his undoing.

"You won't listen to a single word I say, and the children wonder why we fight." She became silent after that, for so long in fact that he wondered what was going through her mind, and whether or not he should be concerned. He stole a peek at her, and noticed for the first time that she was wearing an open a locket, and saw that it had two pictures. One was of Marionette, the Joker and Harley Quinn smiling at the camera like a real family, which sent chills down his spine. The other was one of him in the Bat suit, and though he was sorely tempted to rip the chain from her neck and retrieve the photo, he decided to let it go, as it was the least of his worries. He might have found it to be sweet, if it wasn't the Marionette.

After a few more minutes of deafening silence, she at last spoke. "Well, it's been fun Bat-cake, but I must now bid you a civil adieu. Ah, parting is such sweet sorrow."

Before he could stop her, before he even knew what she was doing, she kissed his cheek, opened her door, slipped out of her restraints, and jumped outside. He slammed on the breaks, and leapt out of the car, knowing she was dead. He'd been going so fast she couldn't possibly have survived, and he felt fear for her gnaw at his chest at the thought of finding her broken, lifeless body on the side of the road.

He knew it would be for the best if she was dead and that she had brought it on herself, but he became wracked with guilt and worry, hoping that she had somehow survived. He quickly climbed out and began his search for her, and though he found small pools of blood on the road, she was nowhere to be found.

He went into the forest, looking for her silently, tempted to call out her name but knowing full well that if he did it would only alert her to his presence and she would run, not that she would be able to put up much of a fight in the state she must be in.

After a while, the blood trail ended, as though she had vanished into thin air. He thought he heard rustling up in the trees despite there being no wind that night. Could she have possibly climbed a tree after the stunt she'd pulled? He climbed a tree to check but found nothing but leaves, and he climbed back down and, having no better options, went back to the Batmobile. As he had been about to get back inside, he gasped when he saw the ground next to it. Written in blood was a message to him that read: _Tag, you're it!_

He shook his head in awe and amazement. Not only had she somehow managed to survive leaping from a car going over a hundred miles per hour, she'd also managed to escape, but not before leaving him a friendly message scrawled in her own blood. She was harder to kill than a cockroach on steroids. He felt his fear for her dissipate, but it was replaced with the worry of what she would do next, now that she was free again. He knew that one day one of them would likely end up killing the other, but he would not allow her to drag him down to her level. He had an impossible task ahead of him, one that would only be made more difficult by the Marionette, the girl he both loathed and loved.

Something suddenly caught his eye. He looked up into the night sky and saw something he hadn't seen in what felt like forever: the Bat-signal. He realized that the people were starting to trust the Batman again, and he felt his spirits rise. Despite his misgivings about trying to fill the Batman's shoes, he realized that maybe he could be their hero.

Maybe, just maybe.

_~The End~_

_**Author's Note:**__ Wow, what a ride. When I first envisioned this story, I had no idea it would turn out like this. I started writing it in February, and the idea came to me even before that. I'm going to miss Rose, but every story must sadly end._

_I've met so many awesome people on here, and to everyone who reviewed, favorited, or just took time out of your day to read my stories, thank you, you guys are the best. If you would, if you haven't reviewed any of my stories before, please let me know what you think, or if you have any tips or suggestions for my writing, because obviously I want to write stories that you'll enjoy reading and I can't improve without feedback. Your opinion means the world to me and I can promise with ninety-seven percent certainty that pressing the "review" button below will not hurt you ;) _

_I hope you enjoyed this story and my others as well._ _Don't cry because it's over, smile because it happened :) _


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